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X-WR-CALDESC:Events for ISKCON Punjabi Bagh,
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DTSTART:20260101T000000
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260624
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260625
DTSTAMP:20260417T045229
CREATED:20260211T105705Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260211T105806Z
UID:48443-1782259200-1782345599@www.iskconpunjabibagh.com
SUMMARY:Appearance Day of Srimati Gangamata Goswami 24th June 2026
DESCRIPTION:Gangamata Goswami was the daughter of King Naresa Narayana of Bengal. From childhood she showed deep devotion to Krsna.
URL:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/event/appearance-day-of-srimati-gangamata-goswami-24th-june-2026/
CATEGORIES:Upcoming event
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DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260625
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260626
DTSTAMP:20260417T045229
CREATED:20260211T105901Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260211T105901Z
UID:48445-1782345600-1782431999@www.iskconpunjabibagh.com
SUMMARY:Pandava Nirjala Ekadashi 25th June 2026
DESCRIPTION:Nirjala Ekadasi occurs during the Jyestha (May/June) month and a description of this fantastically gracious day is found in the Brahma-vaivarta Purana.Once Bhimasena\, the younger brother of Yudhisthira\, asked the best of sages Srila Vyasadeva\, “O great sage\, yogi and knower of the Vedas\, please hear my humble request. My elder brother Yudhisthira\, mother Kunti devi\, brothers Arjuna\, Nakula and Sahadeva\, and Draupadi fast completely on the Ekadasi day. \nYudhisthira is often encouraging me to fast and while I know it is  the injunction of the scriptures\, and I have tried; I simply am unable to fast. My hunger is too great too bear fasting on every Ekadasi. I can give in charity\, I can worship Lord Kesava but I cannot fast. Please instruct me how I can obtain the mercy of Sri Ekadasi. \n“On hearing Bhima’s pathetic entreaty\, Sri Vyasadeva said\, “O Bhima\, if you want to go to the heavenly planets\, avoiding the hellish condition\, then you must refrain from eating on both Ekadasi days each month. \n“Bhima interjected: ‘O Vyasa Muni! It is impossible for me to fast on twenty-four Ekadasi’s per year. What to speak of fasting day and night\, I cannot tolerate my hunger for even a blink of an eye. The ‘brika’ fire of hunger is always present in my stomach\, only voracious eating will quell this formidable foe in the form of craving. With great endeavor I may be able to fast one day a year… \n“Sri Vyasadeva said: ‘O my dear King\, You have already heard from me about the Vedic religious principles and the duties of the human being. But in this age of Kali not everyone can follow these regulations\, I know. Therefore I will tell of a sublime method by which all your desires will be fulfilled. This method is the concentrated essence of all the Puranas. Anybody who observes Ekadasi of the waning and waxing Moons by fasting never goes to hell.” \n“Hearing Vyasadevas words\, Bhimasena grew panicky: ‘But Vyas\, i’ve said\, I can’t fast on two days a month\, I simply can’t! Please give me some easier method. \n“Sri Vyasa Muni replied: During the waxing Moon in the month of Jyestha during the suns presence in either Taurus or Gemini Rasi\, there is an Ekadasi known as Nirjala Ekadasi. On this greatest of days\, one should observe total fasting without even water to drink. One should observe acamana by drinking an amount of water equal to a single mustard seed. If one drinks more or less water than this\, it will amount to having drunk wine. \n“One must not eat anything at all on this Ekadasi\, otherwise the vow is broken and the results lost. One should abstain from eating and drinking from Sunrise on the day of Ekadasi until Sunrise on the day of Dvadasi. In this way\, if one successfully completes fasting on this day\, he receives the results of having observed all the Ekadasi’s of the year. \n“Early on the morning of Dvadasi\, one should give in charity to brahmanas\, and thereafter breakfast with them. O Bhimasena\, please hear of the abounding piety one accumulates by observing this Nirjala Ekadasi\, and thereby reaps the result of all the Ekadasi’s throughout the year. Once\, Lord Visnu\, who holds a conch\, disc\, club and lotus flower\, told me: “If a person gives up all varieties of religion and surrenders unto Me\, he is certainly relieved of all sinful reactions. One cannot attain the supreme destination by giving wealth in charity or attain any benefit by following smarta rules and regulations in Kali yuga. In fact the Vedic religious principles are extinct in Kali yuga\, which is polluted with many faults and illusions. \n“O son of Vayu\, what more can I say. Eating is actually prohibited on all the Ekadasi’s\, and even drinking water is prohibited on Nirjala Ekadasi. By observing this Ekadasi one receives the benefit of bathing in all the holy rivers\, and visiting all the holy places of pilgrimage. If one follows this Ekadasi vrata he need not fear being approached by the Yamadutas at the time of death\, rather he will be greeted by the Visnudutas and transferred to the abode of Visnu. If on the day of Dvadasi following Nirjala Ekadasi one gives water in charity to others\, all his sinful activities will come to an end! \n“When Bhimasena told the other Pandavas what he had heard about this Nirjaala Ekadasi\, they all decided to observe it’s magnificence accordingly. From that day onward Bhimasena began observing this Nirjala vrata\, once a year. Thereafter this Ekadasi is famously known as Pandava Nirjala\, or Bhimaseni Ekadasi. By following this Ekadasi sinful activities as huge as Sumeru or Mandara Mountain are at once burnt to ashes\, like nothing more than a pile of dry leaves. O great devotee! Lord Krsna himself has declared that any pious activities such as taking bath in holy places\, giving charity\, chanting Vedic mantras\, and performing sacrifices that are carried out on this Nirjala Ekadasi are magnified one billion times. \nOne who reads or hears the narration of the boundless glories of this Ekadasi with devotion\, goes back to the spiritual abode. The result one attains by observing the vow of Amavasya conjoined with Pratipada and offering oblations to the forefathers during a solar eclipse is attained by hearing the glories of this brilliantly effulgent gemstone jewel\, Nirjala Ekadasi.
URL:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/event/pandava-nirjala-ekadashi-25th-june-2026/
CATEGORIES:Upcoming event
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DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260627
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260628
DTSTAMP:20260417T045229
CREATED:20260211T111841Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260211T111841Z
UID:48448-1782518400-1782604799@www.iskconpunjabibagh.com
SUMMARY:Panihati Cida Dahi Utsava 27th June 2026
DESCRIPTION:Srila Raghunatha Dasa Gosvami’s chipped- rice-and-yogurt festival for Lord Caitanya and His associates. Celebrated especially in Panihati\, West Bengal. \nThe Chida-dadhi Mahotsav\, also known as the Chipped Rice Festivalof Panihati\, is a yearly celebration of the pastimes of SrilaRaghunatha dasa Goswami and Lord Nityananda Prabhu. Thisastonishing pastime took place on the banks of the Ganges atPanihati\, which is just north of Calcutta. Lord Caitanya and hisassociates enjoyed many transcendental pastimes here. Chida-dadhiMahotsav remembers how the Lord mercifully reciprocated with Hisdevotees by arranging\, through Nityananda Prabhu and Raghunathadasa\, to provide an ecstatic feast of yoghurt and chipped rice\,along with various other nectar foodstuffs. Linked below is anexcerpt from Caitanya-caritamrta\, Antya lila chapter 6\, whichdescribes this wonderful pastime in detail. \nThe chipped rice festival took place just before the monsoons\,when it is very hot (45 – 50 C) and muggy (80 – 90 % humidity)\, sonaturally the most cooling of foodstuffs were offered. Cool yoghurt(dadhi) and chipped rice (chida) were offered with sugar\, bananas\,milk sweets and cakes. \nOur feast menu begins with Ganges Curd Upma\, a moist anddelicious preparation of vegetables and grain. Before offering\, aflavorful stream of yoghurt is poured around the base of the Upma\,in honor of the festival goers who had to stand in the Ganges toenjoy their prasadam because there was no room left on the riverbanks. \nA light and simple Cracked Urad Dal is offered\, with a side ofBanana Chapatis drenched in Orange Cardamom Butter. A sumptuouslyrich Cauliflower & Red Pepper Sabji is simple to make\, andbrings smiles to the devotees. \nA dry curry of Peas and Paneer is stuffed in a hollow Lemon\,which adds nice flavor to the preparation. Rava Idli is a savorycake that goes nicely with the Aloo Kerala Fry\, a spicy fried pattyof potato and bitter melon. \nNestled amongst the whites of rice and yoghurt is a delightfulStuffed White Baby Eggplant which is filled with spiced almondbutter\, then wrapped together with lemongrass and baked. \nAnother pungent savory is the Baigan Sarson\, a treat of dicedeggplant wrapped in mustard greens\, then crispy fried in ghee.Roasted Okra Raita provides a smooth and mellow touch with thespicy dishes\, while the Rhubard & Dried Cherry Chutney adds atangy flavor to the Idli and savouries. \nThe nectar preparations from the original Chida-dadhi festivalare\, we hope\, faithfully represented by Chida-dadhi Pots. These twowonderful sweet rices are served in traditional clay bowls. In onepot\, chipped rice is prepared in sweet yoghurt with bananas\, whilethe second pot contains rice in a sweet\, thick kheer with ghee\,bananas and camphor. \nA milksweet cake\, the Gunja-Mala Malpoori is encircled withfresh red and black berries\, reminiscent of the garland LordCaitanya Mahaprabhu gave Raghunatha das to wear around hisneck. \nSrila Raghunatha dasa gave up eating all foodstuffs after thedeparture from this world of Srila Sanatana\, and from that time onRaghunatha would only take buttermilk in leaf cups. He continued inthis way until the departure of Rupa Gosvami\, after whichRaghunatha gave up all eating and drinking. In honor of thistopmost associate of the Lord\, we offer Banana Leaf Cups ofButtermilk \nThe feast is complete with a tart Lime Cooler blending honey\,ginger and anise that would surely please all those sitting in thePanihati sun\, on the banks of Ganga-Ma. \nWhere is Panihati? Panihati is located on the banks of theGanges 10 miles North of Calcutta (North 24-Parganas north ofmodern day Kolkata – Calcutta)\, in West Bengal India. It is thesite of many wonderful spiritual pastimes of Sri ChaitanyaMahaprabhu and His close personal associates. In this region atthis time of year June\, pre-monsoon it is so hot\, often up in themid-to-high 40s C (45 – 50 C)\, and so humid. The most cooling offoods in such a temperature is yogurt\, cool yogurt (dahi or dadhior doi) This pastime of the Lord is about how the devotees pleasedLord Chaitanya and how the Lord reciprocated with the devotees in avery wonderful and pleasing festival called the Panihati Cida-dadhimahotsav. \nIn the village of Panihati\, Raghunatha dasa obtained aninterview with Nityananda Prabhu who was accompanied by manykirtana performers\, servants and others. Sitting on a rock under atree on the bank of the Ganges\, Lord Nityananda seemed as effulgentas hundreds and thousands of rising suns. Many devotees sat on theground surrounding Him. Seeing the influence of Nityananda Prabhu\,Raghunatha dasa was astonished. Raghunatha dasa offered hisobeisances by falling prostrate at a distant place\, and the servantof Nityananda Prabhu pointed out\, “There is Raghunatha dasa\,offering You obeisances.” \nHearing this\, Lord Nityananda Prabhu said\, “You are a thief.Now you have come to see Me. Come here\, come here. Today I shallpunish you\,” the Lord called him\, but Raghunatha dasa did not gonear the Lord. Then the Lord forcibly caught him and placed Hislotus feet upon Raghunatha dasa’s head. “Make a festival and feedall My associates yogurt and chipped rice.” Hearing this\,Raghunatha dasa was greatly pleased. \nRaghunatha dasa brought chipped rice\, yogurt\, milk.sweetmeats\, sugar\, bananas and ether eatables and placed them allaround. As soon as they heard that a festival was going to be held\,all kinds of brahmanas and other gentlemen began to arrive. Thusthere were innumerable people. Seeing the crowd inSriasing\,Raghunatha dasa arranged to get more eatables from other villages.He also brought two to four hundred large\, round pots. He alsoobtained five or seven especially large earthen pots\, and in thesepots a brahmana began soaking chipped rice for the satisfaction ofLard Nityananda. \nIn one place\, chipped rice was soaked in hot milk in each ofthe large pots. then half the rice was mixed with yogurt\, sugar andbananas. The other half was mixed with condensed milk and a specialtype of banana known as canpa-kala. Then sugar\, clarified butterand camphor were added. After Nityananda Prabhu had changed Hiscloth far a new one and sat on a raised platform\, the brahmanabrought before Him the seven huge pots. \nOn that platform all the most important associates of Sri Nityananda Prabhu\, as well as ether important men\, sat down in acircle around the Lord. Among them were Ramadasa\, Sundarananda\,Gadadhara dasa\, Murari\, Kamalakara\, Sadasiva and Purandara.Dhananjaya\, Jagadisa\, Paramesvara dasa\, Mahesa\, Gauridas and HodaKrsnadasa were also there\, Similarly\, Uddharana Datta Thakura andmany other personal associates of the Lord sat on the raisedplatform with Nityananda Prabhu. No one could count them all. \nHearing about the festival\, all kinds of learned scholars\,brahmanas and priests went there\, Lord Nityananda Prabhu honoredthem and made them sit on the raised platform with Him. Everyonewas offered two earthen pots. In one was put chipped rice withcondensed milk and in the ether chipped rice with yogurt. All theother People sat in groups around the platform. No one could counthow many people there were. Each and every one of them was suppliedtwo earthen pots\, one of chipped rice soaked in yogurt and theother of chipped rice soaked in condensed milk. \nSome of the brahmanas\, not having gotten a place on the platform\, went to the bank of the Ganges with their two earthenpots and soaked their chipped rice there. Others\, who could not geta place even on the bank of the Ganges\, got down into the water andbegan eating their two kinds of chipped rice. Thus some sat on theplatform \,some at the base of the platform\, and some on the bank ofthe Ganges\, and they were all supplied two pots each by the twentymen who distributed the food. \nAt that time\, Raghava Pandita arrived there. Seeing thesituation\, he began to laugh in great surprise. He brought manyother kinds of food cooked in ghee and offered them to the Lord.This prasada he first placed before Lord Nityananda and thendistributed among the devotees. Raghava Pandita said to LordNityananda\, “For You\, sir\, I have already offered food to theDeity\, but You are engaged in a festival here\, and so the food islying there untouched.” \nLord Nityananda replied\, “Let Me eat all this food here duringthe day\, and I shall eat at your home at night. I belong to acommunity of cowherd boys\, and therefore I generally have manycowherd associates with Me. I am happy when we eat together in apicnic like this by the sandy bank of the river. Lord Nityanandamade Raghava Pandita sit down and had two pots delivered to himalso. There were two kinds of chipped rice soaked in them. \nWhen chipped rice had been served to everyone\, Lord NityanandaPrabhu\, in meditation\, brought Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. When SriCaitanya Mahaprabhu arrived\, Lord Nityananda Prabhu stood up. Theythen saw how the others were enjoying the chipped rice with yogurtand condensed milk. From each and every pot\, Lord Nityananda Prabhutook one morsel of chipped rice and pushed it into the mouth of SriCaitanya Mahaprabhu as a joke. In this way Lord Nityananda waswalking through all the groups of eaters\, and all the Vaisnavasstanding there were seeing the fun. \nNo one could understand what Nityananda Prabhu was doing as Hewalked about. Some\, however\, who were very fortunate\, could seethat Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu was also present. Then NityanandaPrabhu smiled and sat down. On His right side He kept four pots ofchipped rice that had not been made from boiled paddy. LordNityananda offered Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu a place and had Him sitdawn. Then together the two brothers began eating chipped rice.Seeing Cord Caitanya Mahaprabhu eating with Him\, Lord NityanandaPrabhu became very happy and exhibited varieties of ecstatic love.Lord Nityananda Prabhu ordered\, “All of you eat\, chanting the holyname of Hari. Immediately the holy names “Hari Hari” resounded\,filling the entire universe. \nWhen all the Vaisnavas were chanting the holy names “HariHari” and eating\, they remembered how Krsna and Balarama ate withtheir companions\, the cowherd boys\, on the bank of the Yamuna. SriCaitanya Mahaprabhu and Lord Nityananda Prabhu are extremelymerciful and liberal. It was Raghunatha dasa’s good fortune thatThey accepted all these dealings. Who can understand the influenceand mercy of Lord Nityananda Prabhu? He is so powerful that Heinduced Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu to come eat chipped rice onthe bank of the Ganges. All the confidential devotees who wereCowherd boys\, headed by Sri Ramadas\, were absorbed in ecstaticlove. They thought the bank of the Ganges to be the bank of theYamuna. \nWhen the shopkeepers of many other villages heard about thefestival\, they arrived there to sell chipped rice\, yogurt\,sweetmeats and bananas. As they came\, bringing all kinds of food\,Raghunatha dasa purchased it all. He gave them the price for theirgoods and later fed them the very same food. Anyone who came to seehow these funny things were going on was also fed chipped rice\,yogurt and bananas. After Lord Nityananda Prabhu finished eating\,He washed His hands and mouth and gave Raghunatha dasa the foodremaining in the four pots. There was food remaining in the threeother big pots of Lord Nityananda\, and a brahmana distributed it toall the devotees\, giving a morsel to each. Then a brahmanas broughta flower garland\, placed the garland on Nityananda Prabhu’s neckand smeared sandalwood pulp All over His body\, When a servantbrought betel nuts and offered them to Lord Nityananda\, the Lordsmiled and chewed them. With His own hands Lord Nityananda Prabhudistributed to all the devotees whatever flower garlands\,sandalwood pulp and betel nuts remained \nAfter receiving the remnants of food left by Lord Nityananda Prabhu\, Raghunatha dasa\, who was greatly happy\, ate some anddistributed the rest among his own associates. Thus have Idescribed the pastimes of Lord Nityananda Prabhu in relation to thecelebrated festival of chipped rice and yogurt. \nSri Caitanya Caritamrta Antya Lila Vol 2 ch 6. \nThe Meeting of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu and Raghunatha dasaGosvami \nA summary of this chapter is given by Bhaktivinoda Öhakura inhis Amata-pravaha-bhañya as follows. When Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhuwent into transcendental fits of ecstatic love\, Ramananda Raya and Svarüpa Damodara Gosvami attended to Him and satisfied Him as Hedesired. Raghunatha dasa Gosvami had been attempting to come to thelotus feet of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu for a long time\, and finallyhe left his home and met the Lord. When Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu hadgone to Cantipura on His way to Vandavana\, Raghunatha dasa Gosvamihad offered to dedicate his life at the Lord’s lotus feet. in themeantime\, however\, a Mohammedan official became envious of Hiraeyadasa\, Raghunatha dasa Gosvami’s uncle\, and induced some bigofficial court minister to have him arrested. Thus Hiraeya dasaleft his home\, but by the intelligence of Raghunatha dasa themisunderstanding was mitigated. Then Raghunatha dasa went toPanihaöi\, and\, following the order of Nityananda Prabhu\, heobserved a festival (ciòa-dadhi-mahotsava) by distributing chippedrice mixed with yogurt. The day after the festival\, NityanandaPrabhu gave Raghunatha dasa the blessing that he would very soonattain the shelter of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. After this incident\,Raghunatha dasa\, with the help of his priest\, whose name was Yadunandana acarya\, got out of his house by trickery and thus ranaway. Not touching the general path\, Raghunatha dasa Gosvami Sritly went to Jagannatha Pure. After twelve days\, he arrived inJagannatha Pure at the lotus feet of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. \nSri Caitanya Mahaprabhu entrusted Raghunatha dasa Gosvami to Svarüpa Damodara Gosvami. Therefore another name for Raghunathadasa Gosvami is Svarüpera Raghu\, or the Raghunatha of SvarüpaDamodara. For five days Raghunatha dasa Gosvami took prasada at thetemple\, but later he would stand at the Siaha-dvara gate and eatonly whatever he could gather by alms. Later he lived by takingalms from various chatras\, or food distributing centers. When Raghunatha’s father received news of this\, he sent some men andmoney\, but Raghunatha dasa Gosvami refused to accept the money.Understanding that Raghunatha dasa Gosvami was living by beggingfrom the chatras\, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu presented him with Hisown guija-mala and a stone from Govardhana Hill. Thereafter\,Raghunatha dasa Gosvami used to eat rejected food that he hadcollected and washed. This renounced life greatly pleasedboth Svarüpa Damodara Gosvami and Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. One day Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu took by force some of the same food\, thusblessing Raghunatha dasa Gosvami for his renunciation.
URL:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/event/panihati-cida-dahi-utsava-27th-june-2026/
CATEGORIES:Upcoming event
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Sri-Mahesa-Pandita.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260629
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260630
DTSTAMP:20260417T045229
CREATED:20260211T112717Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260211T112717Z
UID:48450-1782691200-1782777599@www.iskconpunjabibagh.com
SUMMARY:Snana Yatra 29th June 2026
DESCRIPTION:On this full-moon day\, sixteen days before Ratha- yatra\, Lord Jagannatha is bathed. He becomes sick and is confined to rest for fourteen days. He is then offered special care until He comes out for Ratha-yatra. \nA special bath of Jagannath takes place on the Purnima of Jyestha month (Devasnan Purnima)\, to commemorate the appearance day of Lord Jagannath. \nAccording to Skanda Purana when Raja Indradyumna installed the wooden deities he arranged this bathing ceremony. This day considered to be the birth-day of Lord jagannath. Held in the full-moon day of the month of Jyestha this festival is also simultaneously held in all other important Puri\, it attracts thousands of visitors and pilgrims from all over the country. \n‘Niladri Mohadaya’\, a religious text written in Orissan (Oriya) records the rituals of the festival. Sriharsa in his ‘naisadhiya Charita’ (XV.89) also refers to this festival of Purushottama. This bathing ceremony has a speciality. As this festival does not find mention in the early religious texts\, it is believed to be a tribal ceremony. Lord.Jagannath in His early form was being worshipped as Nilamadhava by a Savara chief called Viswabasu. The story is nicely told in the drama Jagannath Priyan natakam. Till now it is the Daitas and Savars (tribals) who have the exclusive right to conduct the festival. The tribals called Saoras (of southern Orissa) still perform a rite to bath their Deities ceremonially on the last day of the month of Jyestha. For this they collect water from remote Jungles where it remains untouched even by the shadow of the animals. \nOn the previous day of Snana Yatra the images of Jagannath\, Balabhadra and Subhadra along with the image of Sudarshana are ceremonially brought out from the sanctum in a procession to the Snana-vedi (Bathing pandal). This special pandal in the temple precinct of Puri is called Snana Mandap. It is at such a height that visitors standing outside the temple also get a glimpse of the Deities. \nOn the fourteenth day (Chaturdashi – the day before the bathing – Purnima) when the Deities are taken out in procession\, the whole process is called Pahandi or Pahandi vijay. Scholars have given different interpretations of the term (‘Pahandi’). Some opine that it has been derived from the term ‘Praspanda’ meaning movement. Some others are inclined to interpret it as derivation from Pandya vijaya.\nFor the festival the the Snana Vedi (bathing platform) is well decorated with traditional paintings of trees and gardens. Flags and toranas (arches strung with mango leaves) are also put up. The Deities are profusely decorated with flowers. All kinds of perfumes such as Dhupa (incense)\, Aguru (oils) etc. are then offered. As the ‘Pahandi’ of the Deities takes place to the accompaniment of music and beating of various indigenous drums. Thousands of devotees jostle and crave for a look at the Deities in procession. \nIn Puri the bathing procedure is as follows: After Mangala Arati\, the Suaras and Mahasuaras go in a ceremonial procession to fetch water from Suna Kua (Golden well) in one hundred and thirty\, vessels of copper and gold. All of them cover their mouths with a piece of cloth so as not to contaminate it even with their breath. Then all the vessels filled with water are preserved in the Bhoga Mandap. The Palla pandas (a class of Brahmin priests) then purify the water with Haridra (turmeric)\, Java (whole rice)\, Benachera\, Chandan\, Aguru\, flowers\, perfumes and medicinal herbs. \nThe bathing festival takes place during the morning hours of the purnima tithi. The filled vessels are carried from Bhoga Mandap to the Snana Vedi by the Suaras in a long single-line procession. This ritual is called ‘Jaladhibasa’ (Jala – water\, abhishek – bath). \nPrior to the bathing ceremony Jagannath\, Baladeva and Subhadra\, covered in silken cloth and then smeared with red powder\, are taken in procession to a platform which is specially decorated and purified with water and incense. One hundred and eight gold vessels are filled with water taken from a special well containing waters from all the holy tirthas. Abhiseka is performed with this water\, accompanied by the chanting of vedic (Pavamana Sukta) mantras\, kirtana and blowing of conch shells. \nDue to the amount of bathing liquids that are offered to cool the Lord’s transcendental body at this time\, bear in mind that this is the hottest time in India just prior to the refreshing monsoon rains\, His painted form takes a bit of a wash-out. The colouration of the Deity’s faces are painted on with natural earthly mineral paints not modern oil based paints\, so when water is applied to cool Their forms it also has the effect of washing away the features of the former painting. As usual the Lord has a plan to make everything go smoothly. To bridge the episode of His bathing and the period that He comes out to bless everyone for Rathyatra He organized some special pastimes by which the devotees can serve Him and remember His wonderful forms. \nSo to keep a wonderful mood of seeing the Lord in an uplifting manner the Lord arranged for the Hati Vesha festival where Lord Jagannatha and Lord Balaram then puts on the elephant dress\, Hati Vesha\, and Lady Subhadra wears a lotus flower vesha. \nThe original story is told in several different ways\, some call Hati snan (elephant bath) some call Ganesh abhishek as they identify the following story as being the original cause of the Lord to wear this elephant vesh for His devotee: It is said that a staunch devotee of Lord Ganesh and himself a profound scholar visited Puri during Snana Yatra. He was amply rewarded by the king of Orissa for his scholarship. The king asked the scholar to accompany him to see Lord Jagannath which he refused under the pretext that he wouldn’t worship any “God” other than his Ishthadevata Ganesh. Somehow he was persuaded and brought before the Snana vedi. To the utter surprise of all\, Lord Jagannath appeared with an elephantine form that resembled as Ganesh. Since then during Snana Yatra when the sacred bath is performed\, the Deities are dressed like elephants – resembling Ganesh. Various other legends are also told and reasons assigned explaining the Ganesh besa (vesha). \nDuring the sacred bath the colours painted on the images generally fade. Seeing the wooden deities in discolour devotees may not have the appropriate devotional attitude and in fact may feel sinful repugnance. For this reason\, the images are immediately dressed in the Hati vesha (besa) in which they remain mostly covered. \nAfter the Snana Yatra\, the Deities are kept away from public view for fifteen days and during all these days the daily rites of the temple remain suspended. As Jagannatha himself instructed\, after this ceremony\, he is not seen for a fortnight. The Deities are kept on a special “sick room” called the Ratan vedi inside the temple. This period is called ‘Anabasara kala’ meaning improper time for worship. It has been said earlier that the Deities are discoloured as a result of the sacred bath – some say look a bit off colour. During these fifteen days the Daitas (descendants of Viswavasu\, the Savara) repaint and restore the Deities and Jagannath’s fine decorations. The period of colouring and decorating the Deities is divided into seven short periods\, each of two days duration\, and a short period of one day set apart to give finishing touches. Thus the period covers the whole fortnight. On the 16th day the Deities in their new forms after renovation become ready for the public view – darshan. The festival of the first appearance of the Lord Jagannath to his devotees is called Netrotsava (festival for the eyes) or Nava Yauvanotsava (festival of the ever new youth). According to priests of the Jagannath temple the devotee washes away all his sins if he gets a vision of the Lord on this day. On this occasion\, therefore\, great rush of people occurs in the temple. \nThe Shilpa Shastras and Agamas testify that the Deities become suitable for worship only after the performance of the rite of ‘Chakshyu Unmilana’ (Opening of the eyes). During ‘Anabasara’\, the Daitas offer to the Deities only fruits and water mixed with cheese\, and Dasa mula medicines to cure his fever.. In a devotional mood the devotees accept that due to all the bathing the Lord becomes transcendentally poorly\, and therefore needs to take rest. Like human beings they are considered to have fallen ill and are treated by the Raj Vaidya or the King’s physician with specific medicines (Dasamulas). \nThe temple-festivals which are held in a bigger and elaborate scale in the important shrines of Puri and Bhubaneswar are also held simultaneously in all other small shrines of the respective Deities\, though in modest scales. Likewise the Snana Yatra is held in many other temples of Orissa\, and now all over the world. \nOther deities may also receive abhiseka on this day. One should perform puja and bathe the Deities with water or panca gavya and pancamrta while chanting the vedic mantras like purusa sukta. \nSnan Yatra & Hati Vesha Utsav by Jaya Tirtha Charan darshan \nThe Snan yatra bathing ceremony of Lord Jagannath has become one of the most popular festivals on the Iskcon calendar over the years since His Divine Grace Srila A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupad introduced it to the world outside of India. Traditionally this festival has been going on since the time of the carving of the ‘Dharu-brahman’ Deities of Lord Jagannath\, Lord Balaram\, and Lady Subhadra in Sri Purushottam Kshetra (Jagannath Puri) thousands of years ago\, commemorating Their sacred appearance for Their devotees – primarily the saintly King Maharaj Indradyumna.\nMany of you would know that after the bathing ceremony the Lord catches a transcendental chill\, are fed sweet foods and drinks to break Their fever\, and then retires for Their ‘Anavasara kala’ – recuperation period. In Jagannath Puri where the Deities are painted with natural mineral paints\, after the bathing ceremony the paints have a tendency to run and the Deities would be not viewable to the general public. So to allow the devotees to partake further in the Lord’s pastimes\, They made a special arrangement with one ‘brahmin’ who came to visit to take ‘darshan’ at this time. \nLord Sri Krishna\, Jagannath is the Lord of the Universe and so in essence is the original creator of everything\, nothing exists without Him. In one sense then everything is Him\, at least coming from Him. Just as in the creation of a by-product from an original source the by-product has it’s existence by association with the original object. Shastra gives the example of milk being transformed into yogurt for a functionary analogy of Krishna being like the original source (milk in this case) and Lord Shiva being like yogurt\, having come in contact with a culture for his functionary activities in the material world. The milk therefore in one sense created yogurt\, but that yogurt can never again become milk. Therefore it\, although one in origin\, it is different\, becoming secondary or mutated potency and therefore lesser in potency and function.\nSripad Shankaracarya taught a very dangerous philosophy called pancopasika (païcopasana – Chaitanya Chairitamrta Adi-lila 7:151. Purport; Madhya-lila 9:360. purport)\, which wrongly inferred that the Lord and His primary creation\, and the predominating Deities of it were equal in potency to Him. He said that Lord Vishnu\, Ganesh\, Shiva\, Surya\, Laxmi (Durga\, Kali\, Saraswati) were/are equal which to us\, and to Lord Vishnu is to be considered as a grave offense (civasya cré-vinëor ya iha guëa-namadi-sakalaa / dhiya bhinnaa pacyet sa khalu hari-namahita-karaù. – Padma Purana.) \nIn various places it is phrased slightly different ways; (2) to consider the Lord and the demigods to be on the same level or to think that there are many gods (A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. Sri Chaitanya Charitamrta Adi-lila 7:73.\, purport.) (b) to consider the name of Lord Siva or any other demigod to be equally as powerful as the holy name of the Supreme Personality of Godhead (no one is equal to the Supreme Personality of Godhead\, nor is anyone superior to Him)(A.C. Bhaktivedanta swami Prabhupada. SB 7:5:23-24. Purport.) ”The second offense is to see the holy names of the Lord in terms of worldly distinction. The Lord is the proprietor of all the universes\, and therefore He may be known in different places by different names\, but that does not in any way qualify the fullness of the Lord. Any nomenclature which is meant for the Supreme Lord is as holy as the others because they are all meant for the Lord. Such holy names are as powerful as the Lord\, and there is no bar for anyone in any part of the creation to chant and glorify the Lord by the particular name of the Lord as it is locally understood. They are all auspicious\, and one should not distinguish such names of the Lord as material commodities.”(A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. Srimad bhagavatam 2:1:11. Purport.) \nsthavara-jaìgama dekhe\, na dekhe tara mürti\nsarvatra haya nija inoa-deva-sphürti \n“A Vaishnava never sees the material form of anything\, moving or nonmoving. Rather\, everywhere he looks he sees the energy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead\, and immediately he remembers the transcendental form of the Lord.” \nThis wonderfully merciful and enlivening story of the Lord knowing the heart of His devotee\, and personally bestowing His mercy upon him has nothing what so ever with that deviant philosophy.\nThe story goes that this ‘brahmin’ was a devotee of Lord Jagannath\, but for some reason expected to see the elephant-headed deva\, Ganesh\, in the temple. The ‘brahmin’ was somewhat disappointed seeing the deva / demigod not there\, and that Lord Jagannath had been bathed already and that They were looking a bit ‘off colour’ with Their mineral paint colours running. In many ways the hearts’ desire of that devotee were unfulfilled. Then that night\, knowing his heart\, the Lord appeared to the devotee in a dream and told him to go back to the temple and he would not be disappointed. Rather all his desires would be fulfilled by worshipping Lord Jagannath and not by separatedly worshipping any deva (Bhagavad Gita 9:23.). \nThe all merciful Lord then appeared to his devotee; Lord Jagannath and Lord Balaram assumed the appearance of beautifully decorated elephants\, while Lady Subhadra decorated Herself as a Lotus flower. From that time on they began the Hati Vesha (Elephant Mask) festival. Consequently some call it the Hati-vesh festival\, some the Ganesh-vesh festival. Both are correct – the Lord assumed a special form to satisfy His devotee\, just as in other cultures we hear stories of the Lord appearing to Moses in the form of a Burning Bush\, or to Mohammed in the form of sound\, or as with Jagannath in the form of the Dharu-brahman logs that washed up upon the ocean shore to be carried by the sabara Virabhadra\, and fashioned by the architect of the devas Vishvakarma into the wonderful forms of Sriyuts Jagannath\, Baladeva and Subhadra maharani we see before us. \nFormerly when we were in Mayapur we had the rare opportunity to discuss through some local devotees (Jananivas and Pankajanagrhi prabhus) with ‘pujaris’ from Jagannath Puri who were helping to authenticate Iskcon’s ‘seva’ to the Lord at the Jagannath temple in Mayapur. They described to me the festival\, and how to execute it. Since then we began that festival in Melbourne\, Australia where the festival is still an escalating favourite with all of the congregation of devotees. \nIn essence the festival begins with Their Lordships coming to the Snan-Vedi. At this time everyone there gets the great blessing of being able to render the service of bathing the Lord in nectarean natural bathing substances. After that the Deities return to the altar to be cleaned off\, where They are tended by Their ‘sevaks’. The Deities are then dressed in their ‘Hati Veshes’ (Elephant Masks) and offered a wonderful myriad of sweets and sticky buns\, cakes\, and local delicacies – as all elephants\, and especially These Transcendental Ones\, love. The curtains are again opened leaving the food offerings of love for all to see before the Lord. The ‘Arati’ ceremony is then performed\, and according to the Jagannath pujaris\, traditionally it is accepted that the Lord bestows all benedictions and blessings upon those fortunate enough to be there to see Them there in Their Elephant masks. After the ‘Arati’ the Deities retire to Their ‘Anavasara’ rest rooms to ‘restore the colour to Their cheeks’\, where the Lord will be served in private intimacy for the next couple of weeks up to the ‘netrotsava’ or ‘nava yauvanotsava’ – first restoration ‘darshan’. \nThe abundance of offerings are then distributed for a small donation to all the eager devotees who wait to savour the culinary blessings of the Lord too.\nTheir Lordships now have their very own Hati Veshes so that everyone may participate in this transcendental festival.
URL:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/event/snana-yatra-29th-june-2026/
CATEGORIES:Upcoming event
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260629
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260630
DTSTAMP:20260417T045229
CREATED:20260211T112921Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260402T064137Z
UID:48453-1782691200-1782777599@www.iskconpunjabibagh.com
SUMMARY:Disappearance Day of Srila Mukunda Datta 29th June 2026
DESCRIPTION:Mukunda Datta\, the son of Vasudeva Datta\, was a classmate of Lord Caitanya’s. Mukunda Datta had a melodious voice\, and he knew the intricacies of musical meters and ragas.
URL:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/event/disappearance-day-of-srila-mukunda-datta-29th-june-2026/
CATEGORIES:Upcoming event
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/Srila-Mukunda-Datta-Disappearance.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260629
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260630
DTSTAMP:20260417T045229
CREATED:20260211T113327Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260402T064146Z
UID:48455-1782691200-1782777599@www.iskconpunjabibagh.com
SUMMARY:Disappearance Day of Srila Sridhara Pandita 29th June 2026
DESCRIPTION:Kholaveca Sridhara Thakura lived just on the border of Nadia. He maintained himself by selling bananas\, vegetables\, banana leaves and cups.
URL:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/event/disappearance-day-of-srila-sridhara-pandita-29th-june-2026/
CATEGORIES:Upcoming event
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/Srila-Sridhara-Pandita-Disappearance.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260630
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260701
DTSTAMP:20260417T045229
CREATED:20260211T113448Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260402T064155Z
UID:48457-1782777600-1782863999@www.iskconpunjabibagh.com
SUMMARY:Disappearance Day of Srila Syamananda Prabhu 30th June 2026
DESCRIPTION:Syamananda Prabhu\, a disciple of Hrdaya Caitanya\, established the temple of Sri Radha-Syamasundara in Vrndavana.
URL:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/event/disappearance-day-of-srila-syamananda-prabhu-30th-june-2026/
CATEGORIES:Upcoming event
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/Syamananda-Prabhu1.jpg
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260705
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260706
DTSTAMP:20260417T045229
CREATED:20260211T122359Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260402T064203Z
UID:48459-1783209600-1783295999@www.iskconpunjabibagh.com
SUMMARY:Appearance Day of Srila Vakresvara Pandita 5th July 2026
DESCRIPTION:Vakresvara Pandita is mentioned in Sri Caitanya-caritamrta for his ecstatic dancing. Once\, in the house of Srivasa Thakura\, he danced in constant ecstasy for seventy-two hours.
URL:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/event/appearance-day-of-srila-vakresvara-pandita-5th-july-2026/
CATEGORIES:Upcoming event
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/Sri-Vakresvara-Pandita-Appearance.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260710
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260711
DTSTAMP:20260417T045229
CREATED:20260211T122623Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260402T064211Z
UID:48461-1783641600-1783727999@www.iskconpunjabibagh.com
SUMMARY:Disappearance Day of Srila Srivasa Pandita 10th June 2026
DESCRIPTION:Srivasa Pandita\, or Srivasa Thakura\, was a member of the Panca- tattva\, consisting of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu and His four immediate expansions and energies.
URL:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/event/disappearance-day-of-srila-srivasa-pandita-10th-june-2026/
CATEGORIES:Upcoming event
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Srivasa.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260711
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260712
DTSTAMP:20260417T045229
CREATED:20260211T122805Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260211T122805Z
UID:48463-1783728000-1783814399@www.iskconpunjabibagh.com
SUMMARY:Yogini Ekadasi 11th July 2026
DESCRIPTION:Yogini Ekadasi occurs during the waning Moon in the month of Ashadha (June/July) and it’s glories are described in the Brahma Vaivarta Purana. Once Maharaj Yudhisthira enquired from Sri Krsna\, “O Supreme Lord! O Madhusudana! You have described the insurmountable glories of Nirjala Ekadasi. Now I very much wish to hear about the Ekadasi that takes place during the waning Moon in the Ashadha month. \nThe Personality of Godhead svayam-bhagavan Sri Krsna replied\, “My dear King\, I will detail the Ekadasi that comes in the month of Ashadha and the glorious results it’s observance brings. This Ekadasi is known to all as Yogini Ekadasi and it destroys all one’s most grave sinful reactions. It has the power to deliver one from the ocean of material existence and is all auspicious. \n“O best of Kings\, Yudhisthira! I will now narrate a story from the Purana to illustrate this sublime truth. Kuvera\, the king of Alakapuri is famously devoted to Lord Shiva. Once he had a Yaksa gardener named Hema who was married to Visalakshi. Visalakshi was known throughout the region for her fantastically supercilious beauty; thereupon Hema was most ensnared by his wife’s attractiveness. He would regularly gather flowers from the Manasa-sarovara lake and deliver them to Kuvera for his puja to Lord Shankara. One day however\, instead of giving them to Kuvera he remained at home\, captured in the tight bondage of his wife’s love. \n“As a result of this\, Kuvera did not receive any flowers on that day. Kuvera waited six long hours for Hema to arrive. He was most infuriatingly aggravated since\, due to the absence of flowers he was unable to complete his worship of Shiva. Finally after testing his patience to it’s breaking point Kuvera\, the king of the Yakshas bellowed: “Send my messenger to the house of the gardener Hema\, find out what the devil he thinks he’s playing at!” And with that Kuvera sank into his seat\, despondent at the turn of the day’s affairs. \n“After some time the messenger returned: ‘O King Kuvera\, Hema the gardener is enjoying the association of his wife in his house.’ On hearing this\, Kuvera’s anger quadrupled in magnitude and he demanded that Hema be brought before him immediately. On coming to his senses Hema Mali grew ashamed and trembling with fear he came before king Kuvera. He offered his respectful obeisances\, yet when he rose he was not surprised to find Kuvera’s eyes had grown red with anger and his entire body trembled with rage. \n“In a voice like burning oil Kuvera said: ‘O sinful one! O destroyer of religious principles\, you have disregarded my most worshipable Lord Sri Shankara and instead you have engaged in your own sense gratification. So be it\, I am cursing you now to suffer from white leprosy. You will henceforth remain separated from your beautiful wife and be always known as a low-class fool. Now\, get out of my sight!’ \n“Being thus cursed by the powerful Kuvera\, Hema Mali immediately fell from Alakapuri and was born upon the earth. He became afflicted with white leprosy and suffered immensely miserable conditions. In intense agony he took shelter of a dense and formidable forest. In the gloomy depths of the forest he suffered the pangs of hunger and thirst and at night he could not sleep for fear of wild animals. After wandering through this forest for some time he came at last to the foothills of the Himalayan mountain range. While moving hither and thither through this region he met with great providence and good fortune the most esteemed and regal sage Markendaya. Feeling very forlorn and downtrodden Hema Mali stood at some distance from the Rsi and offered his obeisances again and again. The kind hearted sage called the poor\, afflicted person before him and asked: ‘Dear sir\, how has the dreadful fate befallen you? What possible sinful\, condemnable activities have you performed to warrant such a nasty reaction? \n“On hearing this\, Hema Mali replied: ‘O most kind and munificent sage! I was the gardener of Kuvera\, king of the Yakshas. My name is Hema. I used to collect flowers from the Manasa-sarovara lake for the worship of Lord Shiva. One day I was late to give flowers to my master because I was fulfilling my lusty desires instead. Therefore Kuvera became angry and cursed me in this way. I do not know what great fortune has brought me to you\, I have heard that the hearts of the saintly personalities are always afflicted by seeing the sufferings of others and they are always engaged in welfare activities. O great sage! With my head in my hands I surrender unto you unequivocally\, please be kind and deliver this poor\, fallen wretch. \n“The sage Markendaya spoke in a compassionate voice like liquid honey. ‘O gardener! I will instruct you about a most auspicious and beneficial vow. This vow is known as Yogini Ekadasi and it occurs during the waning Moon of the Ashadha month (June/July.) By the influence of it’s piety you will certainly be liberated from the curse you are suffering. On hearing this instruction Hema proceeded to proffer his humble genuflections in the dust at the saints feet again and again\, he became joyful and wept tears of sincere gratitude. When the Ekadasi day arrived he oberved it in the proper manner by rising early and abstaining from all eating and drinking. By the influence of completing the sacred vow of Ekadasi he regained his divine form and returned to his home in Alakapuri\, the abode of Kuvera. He was happily reunited with his wife and humbly took up his gardening service once more. \n“O best beloved\, the result one obtains by feeding eighty-eight thousand brahmanas is attained by observing this Yogini Ekadasi. This indomitable Ekadasi destroys all one’s sinful reactions!
URL:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/event/yogini-ekadasi-11th-july-2026/
CATEGORIES:Upcoming event
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260714
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260715
DTSTAMP:20260417T045229
CREATED:20260211T122932Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260402T064220Z
UID:48465-1783987200-1784073599@www.iskconpunjabibagh.com
SUMMARY:Disappearance Day of Srila Gadadhara Pandita 14th July 2026
DESCRIPTION:Gadadhara Pandita is among the group known as the Panca-tattva. Gadadhara Pandita is considered an incarnation of Srimati Radharani\, the eternal consort of Sri Krsna.
URL:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/event/disappearance-day-of-srila-gadadhara-pandita-14th-july-2026/
CATEGORIES:Upcoming event
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Sri-Gadadhara-Pandita.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260714
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260715
DTSTAMP:20260417T045229
CREATED:20260211T123800Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260211T123800Z
UID:48467-1783987200-1784073599@www.iskconpunjabibagh.com
SUMMARY:Disappearance Day of Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura 14th July 2026
DESCRIPTION:Bhaktivinoda Thakura reestablished\, in the closing days of the nineteenth century\, the teachings of Lord Caitanya\, which by then had been largely misrepresented or lost.
URL:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/event/disappearance-day-of-srila-bhaktivinoda-thakura-14th-july-2026/
CATEGORIES:Upcoming event
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/Srila-Bhaktivinoda-Thakura.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260715
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260716
DTSTAMP:20260417T045229
CREATED:20260211T125609Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260211T125609Z
UID:48469-1784073600-1784159999@www.iskconpunjabibagh.com
SUMMARY:Cleansing the Gundica Temple 15th July 2026
DESCRIPTION:The cleansing of the Gundica temple in Jagannatha Puri\, India. \nIn his Amrta-pravaha-bhasya\, Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura summarizesthis chapter as follows. The King of Orissa\, Maharaja Prataparudra\,tried his best to see Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Srila Nityananda Prabhu andthe other devotees informed the Lord about the King’s desire\, but SriCaitanya Mahaprabhu would not agree to see him. At that time Sri NityanandaPrabhu devised a plan\, and He sent a piece of the Lord’s outward garmentto the King. The next day\, when Ramananda Raya again entreated SriCaitanya Mahaprabhu to see the King\, the Lord\, denying the request\, askedRamananda Raya to bring the King’s son before Him. The prince visited theLord dressed like a Vaisnava\, and this awakened remembrance of Krsna. Thus SriCaitanya Mahaprabhu delivered the son of Maharaja Prataparudra. \nAfter this\, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu washed the Gundica temple before the Ratha-yatra took place. He then took His bath at Indradyumna Lakeand partook of prasadam in the garden nearby. While Sri CaitanyaMahaprabhu washed the temple of Gundica\, a Gaudiya Vaisnava washed the lotus feet of the Lord and drank the water. This incident is very significant\,for it awoke within the devotee ecstatic love. Then the son of AdvaitaPrabhu named Gopala fainted during kirtana\, and when he did not come to hissenses\, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu favored him by awakening him. There was alsosome humorous talk between Nityananda Prabhu and Advaita Prabhu duringprasadam. Advaita Prabhu said that Nityananda Prabhu was unknown to anyoneand that it was not the duty of a householder brahmana to accept dinner with aperson unknown in society. In answer to this humorous statement\, SriNityananda Prabhu replied that Advaita Acarya was a monist and that one couldnot know how his mind could be turned by eating with such an impersonalist.The conversation of these two prabhus – Nityananda Prabhu and AdvaitaPrabhu – carried a deep meaning that only an intelligent man can understand.After all the Vaisnavas finished their luncheon\, Svarupa Damodara andothers took their prasadam within the room. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu took greatpleasure when He saw the Jagannatha Deity after the period of the Deity’sretirement. At that time Lord Caitanya was accompanied by all the devotees\, andall of them were very pleased.
URL:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/event/cleansing-the-gundica-temple-15th-july-2026/
CATEGORIES:Upcoming event
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Gundica-Marjana.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260716
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260717
DTSTAMP:20260417T045229
CREATED:20260212T120926Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260212T120926Z
UID:48483-1784160000-1784246399@www.iskconpunjabibagh.com
SUMMARY:Ratha Yatra Starts 16th July 2026
DESCRIPTION:The chariot festival in which Lord Krsna in the form of Lord Jagannatha rides with Lord Balarama and Subhadra Devi in Jagannatha Puri\, India. \nAt the height of Indian summer\, right at the beginning of the Monsoon\, the Lord of Puri goes to his garden palace for the annual summer vacation. Originally the festival has its foundation in the residents of Vrindavan bringing back their Lords\, Krishna\, Balaram and Lady Subhadra from Kurukshetra. \nToday in Puri He\, the Lord of the Universe travels in some style from his temple in Puri\, to his garden temple\, located outside the town centre called Gundicha. Thousands of Hindus flock to see\, and to pull the grand chariots from one temple to the other. The English word “Jagannaut” comes from the giantchariots of Lord Jagannath of Puri. The British were so stunned by the size of the chariots\, they coined a word for it! \nIn Puri\, Lord Jagannath is worshipped with his elder brother Bala-Rama and his sister Subhadra. Each sibling has his / her own chariot and goes to the summer residence with great pomp. Each of the chariots is covered in distinctly coloured cloth. Various symbols and signs help pilgrims distinguish between the three gods. As a mark of respect\, and humbleness\, the king of Puri sweeps the chariots of the Gods of Puri. Festival begins with a huge fanfare of conches\, trumpets\, drums and cymbals. Accompanied by music and dancers\, the divine travellers begin their journey to the garden temple. \nIn order to accommodate the three chariots\, the street leading from the main temple to the garden temple is very wide. Temples\, ashrams\, hotels\, inns\, shops and mansions of the old aristocracy line the route. All buildings are colourfully decorated with flags\, buntings and awnings of bright colours. Ladies in colourful saries crowd the balconies\, doors and windows decked with flowers. Men and women rush to pullthe chariots along this main street of Puri. This is an exciting time in Puri. The Lord who is rarely glimpsed outside his inner sanctum\, is now easily accessible to everyone in the streets of Puri ! \nAway from the hustle and bustle of the city\, away from the innumerable temple servants\, away from their spouses\, the siblings enjoy their “Vrindavan-like” garden retreat. The temple routine in the garden temple is very much relaxed compared to the main temple. Various festivities and fun are planned for their short stay in this leafy abode. ( Depending on the lunar cycle\, this festival can last anywhere from 1 – 2 weeks. ) \nAs the Lord has only taken his brother and his sister on this holiday\, the wives are left at home! Alone and brooding\, Goddess Lakshmi (Goddess of wealth)\, seeks help from Goddess Vimala to get their husband back. Travelling by night\, in a closed palanquin\, she arrives at the garden temple of the Lord. She enchantsthe Lord and entreats him to return. \nA few days later\, Lord returns to his city temple. Though delighted\, goddess Lakshmi orders the temple doors to be shut in His face – in the vain hope of teaching Him a lesson! In the conversation that follows\, female attendants (dev-dasi) of the Goddess blame the Lord of being inconsiderate\, “Jack the Lad”\, taking His wife for granted and being far too easily led by the in-laws (sounds familiar?). \nThe mood of the sevaks in Puri is that Jagannath is their friend as opposed to Him being their Master\, as in other lilas. In many cases the residents of Purushottam Sri Kshetra make many comparission with their own lives in dealing with Jagannath. These intimacies reflect the overall mood\, and carry the tradition of heritage of Jagannath’s original coming to Puri many thousands of years before and the wonderful pastimes of the saintly Indradyumna maharaj vision of the Lord\, Visvavasu the Sabara’s attachment to the Lord as Nila Madhav\, and finally the mystical appearance of the Dharu-Brahma from which the first Deities were carved by the architect of the devas Vishvakarma\, the mystical carrying of the log by the descendant of Visvavasu (Virabhadra) that many elephants and men could not budge. Such wonderful depictive pastimes make one’s hair stand in horipulations at their recitation. \nToday in Puri Lord’s servants explain that He really had no choice\, as they bring Him back that He went against His will\, He still loves Her deeply and respects Her enormously!! Eventually\, the Lord offers the female gate-keepers bribess and enters the inner sanctum to pacify the Goddess Lakshmi. Such are the dramas of a married man’s life! The next day\, Lord and the Goddess once again appear in the public\, reconciled and as loving as ever. Lord’s summer vacation is over\, and life in the great temple returns to its age old routine. \nOf all the festivals\, the Ratha Yatra of Jagannatha is the most famous. This takes place on the second day of the waxing phase of the moon of the asadha month. Jagannatha ordered King Indradyumna to take him to his birth place\, the Gundica Mandira (symbolically Vrindavana)\, on this day. \nJagannatha’s ratha is marked with a cakra and garuda\, is yellow in color\, with four white horses. The protecting deity is Nrsimha. \nBaladeva’s cart is blue\, with a palm tree insignia\, and four black horses. The protecting deity is Sesa. \nSubhadra’s cart is black\, with lotus insignia\, protected by Vanadurga. \nSudarsana is carried out first and placed on Subhadra’s cart. In succession Subhadra\, Baladeva\, and Jagannatha are moved to their carts using silk ropes. After being situated on their carts they are decorated and worshipped. Midway on the journey\, the carts stop\, the deities are bathed in pancamrta and cool water\, and naivedyam and aratrika are offered. On arrival at the Gundica Mandira\, aratrika is offered\, and then the deities enter the temple for rest. \nOn the fifth day of the lunar month\, called Hera (looking for) Pancami\, Laksmi comes looking for Jagannatha with Siva and her maid servants. When the servants of Jagannatha see her at the first gate of the Gundica Mandira\, they close the door of Jagannatha’s bhoga mandira so that she cannot see him. She becomes angry and breaks a piece of Jagannatha’s ratha. After taking a meal she returns to the main temple. \nOn the ninth day of the moon\, the return Ratha Yatra takes place\, and Laksmi and her servants come to meet Jagannatha. Jagannatha gives her his garland to appease her. \nSeveral days later on dvadasi\, Laksmi closes the temple doors in anger and her servants quarrel with Jagannatha’s servants. After Jagannatha concedes defeat\, the doors are opened again. \nSuch is the reverance\, the fun\, the mysticism\, and overall bliss of Rathyatra in Jagannath Puri.
URL:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/event/ratha-yatra-starts-16th-july-2026/
CATEGORIES:Upcoming event
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END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260716
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260717
DTSTAMP:20260417T045229
CREATED:20260212T121023Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260402T064310Z
UID:48484-1784160000-1784246399@www.iskconpunjabibagh.com
SUMMARY:Disappearance Day of Srila Svarupa Damodara Gosvami 16th July 2026
DESCRIPTION:Svarupa Damodara Gosvami was the personal secretary of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. He was a great scholar as well as an expert musician.
URL:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/event/disappearance-day-of-srila-svarupa-damodara-gosvami-16th-july-2026/
CATEGORIES:Upcoming event
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/Sri-Svarupa-Damodara-Gosvami.jpeg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260716
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260717
DTSTAMP:20260417T045229
CREATED:20260212T121130Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260402T064318Z
UID:48485-1784160000-1784246399@www.iskconpunjabibagh.com
SUMMARY:Disappearance Day of Srila Sivananda Sena 16th July 2026
DESCRIPTION:Sivananda Sena\, an associate of Lord Caitanya\, used all his possessions and wealth in the service of Lord Caitanya and His devotees. Every year he would lead a party of 200 devotees from Bengal to Jagannatha Puri to attend the annual Ratha-yatra festival.
URL:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/event/disappearance-day-of-srila-sivananda-sena-16th-july-2026/
CATEGORIES:Upcoming event
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/Sri-Sivananda-Sena.jpg
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260718
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260719
DTSTAMP:20260417T045229
CREATED:20260212T121325Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260212T121325Z
UID:48490-1784332800-1784419199@www.iskconpunjabibagh.com
SUMMARY:Hera Pancami 18th July 2026
DESCRIPTION:A festival held three days after Ratha-yatra to commemorate Srimati Rukmini Devi’s visit to Vrndavana to bring Lord Krsna back to Dvaraka.
URL:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/event/hera-pancami-18th-july-2026/
CATEGORIES:Upcoming event
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260719
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260720
DTSTAMP:20260417T045229
CREATED:20260212T121409Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260402T064326Z
UID:48491-1784419200-1784505599@www.iskconpunjabibagh.com
SUMMARY:Disappearance Day of Srila Vakresvara Pandita 19th July 2026
DESCRIPTION:Vakresvara Pandita is mentioned in Sri Caitanya-caritamrta for his ecstatic dancing. Once\, in the house of Srivasa Thakura\, he danced in constant ecstasy for seventy-two hours.
URL:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/event/disappearance-day-of-srila-vakresvara-pandita-19th-july-2026/
CATEGORIES:Upcoming event
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Sri-Vakresvara-Pandita.jpg
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260724
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260725
DTSTAMP:20260417T045229
CREATED:20260212T121500Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260212T121500Z
UID:48492-1784851200-1784937599@www.iskconpunjabibagh.com
SUMMARY:Return of Ratha Yatra 24th July 2026
DESCRIPTION:The chariot festival in which Lord Krsna in the form of Lord Jagannatha rides with Lord Balarama and Subhadra Devi in Jagannatha Puri\, India.
URL:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/event/return-of-ratha-yatra-24th-july-2026/
CATEGORIES:Upcoming event
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/ratha.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260725
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260726
DTSTAMP:20260417T045229
CREATED:20260212T121839Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260212T121839Z
UID:48497-1784937600-1785023999@www.iskconpunjabibagh.com
SUMMARY:Sayana Ekadashi 25th July 2026
DESCRIPTION:Sayan Ekadashi Deva Sayani Ekadashi Padma Ekadashi from the Bhavishya-uttara Purana.\nThe saintly king Yudhishthira Maharaj said\, “Oh Keshava\, what is the name of that Ekadashi that occurs during the light fortnight of the month of Ashadha (June July)? Who is the worshippable Deity for the auspicious day\, and what is the process for observing this event?” \nLord Sri Krishna replied\, “Oh caretaker of this Earthly planet\, I shall gladly tell you a wonderful historical event that the deva lord Brahma once narrated to his son Narad Muni. \n“One day Narad Muni asked his father\, ‘What is the name of the Ekadashi that comes during the light part of the month of Ashadha’\, much as you did? ‘Kindly tell me how I should observe this Ekadashi and thus please the Supreme Lord\, Sri Vishnu.’ \n“Lord Brahma replied\, ‘Oh great saintly orator\, O best of all sages\, Oh purest devotee of Lord Vishnu\, your question is as usual excellent for all mankind. There is nothing better than Ekadashi\, the day of Lord Sri Hari\, in this or any other world. It nullifies even the worst sins if observed properly. For this reason I shall tell you about this Ashadha-shukla Ekadashi. \n“Fasting on this Ekadashi purifies one of all sins and fulfills all ones desires. Therefore\, whoever neglects to observe this sacred fast day is a good candidate for entering into hell. Ashadha-shukla Ekadashi is also famous as Padma Ekadashi. Just to please the Supreme Lord Hrishikesha\, the master of the senses\, one should fast on this day. Listen carefully\, Oh Narad\, as I relate to you a wonderful historical event that was recorded in the scriptures regarding this Ekadashi. Just hearing this account destroys all kinds of sins\, along with all obstacles on the path to spiritual perfection. \n“Oh son\, there was once a saintly king in the Surya Vamsha (Sun dynasty) whose name was Mandhata. Because he always stood up for the truth\, he was appointed emperor. He took care of his subjects as though they were his very own family members and children. On account of his piety and great religiosity\, there was no pestilence\, drought\, or disease of any kind in his entire kingdom. All his subjects were not only free of all kinds of disturbances but also were very wealthy. The king’s own treasury was free of any ill-gotten moneys\, and thus he ruled happily for many years. \n“Once\, however\, because of some sin in his kingdom\, there was a drought for three years. The subjects found themselves beset by famine also. The lack of food grains made it impossible for them to perform the prescribed Vedik sacrifices\, offer oblations of grita (ghee) to their forefathers and to the devas\, engage in any ritualistic worship\, or even study the Vedik literatures. Finally\, they all came before their beloved king in a great assembly and addressed him thus\, ‘Oh king\, you always see to our welfare\, so we humbly beg your assistance now. Everyone and everything in this world needs water. Without water\, almost everything is rendered useless or dead. The Vedas call water nAra\, and because the Supreme Personality of Godhead sleeps upon water\, His another name is NArAyana. God makes His own abode on water and takes His rest there. \nIt is said that three things cannot exist without water; pearls\, human beings\, and flour. The essential quality of a pearl is its luster\, and that is due to water. The essence of a man is his semen\, whose main constituent is water. And without water\, flour cannot be made into dough and then be cooked into various forms of bread\, offered and eaten. Sometimes water is called jala-nArAyaNa\, the Supreme Lord in the form of this life sustaining substance water. \nIn His form as the clouds\, the Supreme Lord is present throughout the sky and pours forth rains\, from which grow the grains that maintain every living entity. \n“Oh king\, the severe drought has caused a great lack of valuable grains; thus we are all miserable\, and the population is decreasing as people die off or leave your kingdom. Oh best ruler on Earth\, please find some solutions to this problem and bring us to peace and prosperity once again.” \n“The king replied\, “You speak the truth\, for grains are like Brahman\, the Absolute Truth\, who lives within grains and thereby sustains all beings. Indeed\, it is because of grains that the entire world lives. Now\, why is there a terrible drought in our kingdom? The Holy Scriptures discuss this subject very thoroughly. If a king (or head of the country) is irreligious\, both he and his subjects suffer. I have meditated upon the cause of our problem for a long time\, but after searching my past and present character I can honestly say that I find no sin. Still\, for the good of all your subjects\, I shall try to remedy the situation.” \nThinking in this way\, King Mandhata assembled his army and entourage. Paid his obeisances to me\, and then entered the forest. He wandered here and there\, seeking great sages in their Ashrams and inquiring about how to resolve the crisis in his kingdom. At last he came upon the ashram of one of my other sons\, Angira Muni\, whose effulgence lit up all directions. Seated in his hermitage\, Angira looked like a second Brahma. King Mandhata was very pleased to see that exalted sages\, whose senses were completely under control. \n“The king immediately dismounted his horse and offered his respectful obeisances at the lotus feet of Angira Muni. Then the king joined his palms and prayed for the Muni’s blessings. That saintly person reciprocated by blessing the king with sacred mantras; then he asked him about the welfare of the seven limbs of his kingdom. The seven limbs of a king’s domain are the king himself; the ministers; his treasury; his military forces; his allies; the brahmins; the sacrificial performances performed in the kingdom and the needs of the subjects under his care. \n“After telling the sage how the seven limbs of his kingdom were situated\, King Mandhata asked the sage about his own situation\, and if he was happy. Then Angira Muni asked the king why he had undertaken such a difficult journey into the forest\, and the king told him of the affliction his kingdom was suffering. The king said\, “Oh great sage\, I am ruling and maintaining my kingdom while following the Vedik injunctions\, and thus I do not know the reason for the drought. To solve this mystery\, I have approached you for help. Please help me relieve the suffering of my subjects.” \n“Angira Rishi said tot he king\, ‘The present age\, Satya yuga\, is the best of all ages\, for in this age Dharma stands on all four legs (Truthfulness\, Austerity\, Mercy\, and Cleanliness). In this age everyone respects Brahmins as the topmost members of society. Also\, everyone fulfills his occupational duties\, and only twice-born Brahmins are allowed to perform Vedik austerities and penances. Although this is a standard\, Oh lion among kings\, there is one shudra (uninitiated\, untrained person) who is thus unlawfully performing the rites of austerity and penance in your kingdom. This is why there is no rain in your land. You should therefore punish this labourer with death\, for by so doing you will remove the contamination inflicted by his actions and restore peace to your subjects.” \n“The king then replied\, “How can I kill an offenseless performer of austerity and sacrifice? Please give me some spiritual solution.” \n“The great sage Angira Muni then said\, “Oh king\, you should observe a fast on the Ekadashi that occurs during the light fortnight of the month of Ashadha. This auspicious day is named Padma Ekadashi\, and by its influence plentiful rains and thus grains and other foodstuffs will surely return to your kingdom. This Ekadashi bestows perfection upon its faithful observers\, removes all kinds of bad elements\, and destroys all obstacles on the path to perfection. Oh king\, you\, your relatives\, and your subjects should all observe this sacred Ekadashi fast. Then everything in your kingdom will undoubtedly return to normal.” \n“Upon hearing these words\, the king offered his obeisances and then returned to his palace. When the Padma Ekadashi arrived\, King Mandhata assembled all the Brahmins\, Kshatriyas\, Vaishyas and shudras in his kingdom and instructed them to strictly observe this important fast day. After they had observed it\, the rains fell\, just as the sage had predicted\, and in due course of time there were abundant crops and a rich harvest of grain. By the mercy of the Supreme Lord Hrishikesha\, the master of the senses\, all the subjects of King Mandhata became extremely happy and prosperous. \n“Therefore\, Oh Narada\, everyone should observe this Ekadashi fast very strictly\, for it bestows all kinds of happiness\, as well as ultimate liberation\, upon the faithful devotee’ \nLord Sri Krishna concluded\, “My dear Yudhishthira\, Padma Ekadasi is so powerful that one who simply reads or hears its glories becomes completely sinless. Oh Pandava\, one who wishes to please Me should strictly observe this Ekadashi\, which is also known as Deva-sayani Ekadashi \nDeva-sayani\, or Vishnu-sayani\, indicates the day when Lord Vishnu goes to sleep with all the devas (demigods). It is said that after this day one should not perform any new auspicious ceremonies until Devothani Ekadashi (Haribodhini (Probodhini) Devotthaani (Uttana) Ekadashi)\, which occurs during the month of Kartika (October November)\, because the devas (demigods)\, being asleep\, cannot be invited to the sacrificial arena and because the Sun is travelling along its Southern course (Dakshinayanam). \n“Lord Sri Krishna continued\, “Oh lion among kings\, Yudhishthira Maharaj\, whoever wants liberation should regularly observe a fast on this EkAdasi which is also the day when the Chaturmasya fast begins.” \nThus ends the narration of the glories of the Ashadha-shukla Ekadashi\nalso known as Padma Ekadashi or Deva-sayani Ekadashi from the Bhavishya-uttara Purana.
URL:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/event/sayana-ekadashi-25th-july-2026/
CATEGORIES:Upcoming event
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260729
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260730
DTSTAMP:20260417T045229
CREATED:20260212T122015Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260212T122015Z
UID:48498-1785283200-1785369599@www.iskconpunjabibagh.com
SUMMARY:Guru (Vyasa) Purnima 29th July 2026
DESCRIPTION:The appearance anniversary of Srila Vyasadeva\, the compiler of the Vedic literature. \nThis event really is directed towards Srila Vyasadeva\, thus in some sampradayas they refer to Guru Purnima as Vyasa Purnima. Traditionally it is the day when the guru is worshipped. \nIn the book Festivals\, Fairs and Fasts of India (Shakti M Gupta. 1991. Clarion books. page 88-89.) It says: Guru Purnima “……is observed on the full moon day in the month of Ashadha in honour of the sage Vyasa\, by keeping a fast\, worshippig him for His blessings and to gain wisdom. Formerly on this day\, gurus who were the traditional teachers\, were honoured by their pupils. \nThe river Beas is believed to have been so named as Vyasa practiced penance on its banks and compiled the four Vedas\, the Mahabharat and the Eighteen Purana there. Since it is not possible for one man to have compiled so much in his life-time\, and oer a tim span of a hundred years\, it is believed that the name Vyasa must have been applied to many sages. Generally speaking\, the name Veda Vyasa is applied to Krishna Dwaipayana who was the son of Satyavati and the sage Parasa – this is before Satyavati married King Shantanu of Mahabharata fame.” \nSome Brief Information About Srila Vyasadeva.\n“When the second millenium (‘Dwarpa Yuga’) overlapped the third (‘Treta Yuga’)\, the great sage Srila Vyasadeva was born to Parasara Muni in the womb of Satyati\, the daughter of Vasu (the fisherman).”\n(Srimad Bhagavatam 1:4:14.). \nIn Srila Vyasa’s childhood he was called Krsna\, because of his dark complexion\, and because he was born on an island at the confluence of the Sati and Mati Rivers he was called Dwaipayana. After dividing the Vedas he got the name Veda Vyasa. There are some who say that Krsnadwaipayana Veda Vyasa took his birth at a place now known as Vyasa Goofer\, the cave of Srila Vyasa in present day Nepal\, on the road from Pokara to Kathmandu which was\, in days of yore\, part of the kingdom of King Janaka. There are local records that support this statement\, which say this was the ‘ashrama’ of Parasara Muni and at this place Srila Vyasa was conceived. They also lay claim that later Srila Vyasa came back to that ‘ashrama’ and stayed there for some time\, and this being why there is a small Deity of Him at the entrance of the cave. The Padma Purana however says that he was conceived on an island created by Parasara in the Yamuna river\, (Padmalocana Prabhu’s book entitled “Yamuna Devi\, The Personification Of Prema Bhakti”\, Page 24.)\, in connection with the place known as Soma Tirtha ghat. Some also say that the birth place was at Damauli.\nAnyway\, everyone at least agrees that the date of Srila Vyasa’s appearance was on the twelfth day of the light fortnight in the month of Vaisaka (April-May)\, called Vasant Dwadasi. \nThe following is the story that we just touched upon mentioning how Srila Vyasa came to make His appearance.\nOnce the hermit Parasara became attracted to a fisher girl of the name Matsya-Gandha who was found inside a fish. (The fish was actually a celestial maiden named Adrika who conceived two children by collecting the semen of the King of Chedi when his semen had fallen into the water of a river after seeing two animals engaged in coitus.) Parasara Muni asked the beautiful Matsya-Gandha\, so named because of her fishy aroma\, to take him in her boat from one side of the river to the other\, but the beauty of this damsel\, her bodily movements from the rowing\, aroused lusty desires in Parasara. When he sat close to her she moved away\, and asked him not to violate her chastity\, but Parasara Muni being already too far carried away\, created an artificial fog on the river and seduced her right there in the boat. He then created an island in the river and on that island the girl conceived a child in her womb. Parasara explained to her that even after the child was born she would remain a virgin and the son born to her would be a portion of Lord Visnu and would be famous throughout the three worlds. He would be a man of purity\, the spiritual master of the entire world\, and He would divide the Vedas.\nSrila Vyasa soon grew into everything that Parasara had described\, and had many disciples. \nLater in life it is recorded that Srila Vyasa returned to this island in the river and there compiled the Srimad Bhagavatam. Recorded is another instance when Srila Vyasa called for Ganesa (the elephant-headed ‘deva’) to write the Mahabharata as he related it to him. He did so on the condition that Srila Vyasa continually recited\, and Ganesa\, having perfectly understood the meaning\, wrote down the Mahabharata. The word “Vyasa” means one who describes elaborately. \n“The great sage\, Srila Vyasa who was fully equipped with knowledge\, could see through his transcendental vision the deterioration of everything material\, due to the influence of the age. He could also see that the faithless people in general would be reduced in duration of life and would be impatient due to lack of goodness. Then he contemplated for the welfare of men in all statuses and orders of life. He saw that the sacrifices mentioned in the Vedas were means by which people’s occupations could be purified\, and to simplify the process\, he divided the one Veda into four\, in order to expand them among men. The four divisions of the original sources of knowledge (the Vedas) were made separately\, but historical facts and authentic stories mentioned in the Puranas are called the fifth Veda.”(Srimad Bhagavatam 1:4:17-20.). \n“Thus the great sage Srila Vyasadeva\, who is very kind to the ignorant mass\, edited the Vedas so they might be assimilated by less intellectual men. Still he was not satisfied\, even though he was engaged in working for the total welfare of all people. Thus Srila Vyasa\, being dissatisfied in heart\, began to reflect within himself. ‘I have\, under strict disciplinary vows\, unpretentiously worshipped the Vedas\, the spiritual master and the altar of sacrifice. I also abided by the rulings and have shown the import of disciplic succession through the explanation of the Mahabharata\, by which even women\, shudras and others (friends of the twice born) can see the path of religion. I am feeling incomplete\, though myself I am fully equipped with everything required by the Vedas. This may be because I did not specifically point out the devotional service of the Lord\, which is dear both to perfect beings and to the infallible Lord’.” \n“Srila Narada Muni (who was another son of Prajapati Brahma) reached the cottage of Srila Krsna-dwaipayana Vyasa on the banks of the Sarasvati\, where Srila Vyasa was staying at that time\, just when Srila Vyasa was regretting his defects. At the auspicious arrival of Srila Narada\, Srila Vyasadeva got up respectfully and worshipped him\, giving him veneration equal to that given to Sri Brahmaji\, the creator. Srila Narada then said: ‘O Srila Vyasadeva\, your vision is completely perfect. Your good fame is spotless. You are firm in vow and situated in truthfulness\, and thus you can think of the pastimes of the Lord in trance for the liberation of the people in general from all material bondage. The people in general are naturally inclined to enjoy\, and you have encouraged them in that way in the name of religion. This is verily condemned and is quite unreasonable. Because they are guided under your instructions\, they will accept such activities in the name of religion and will hardly care for prohibitions.’ And so Narada Muni\, Srila Vyasadeva’s spiritual master\, instructed Srila Vyasa to compile the Maha-Bhagavat Purana (Srimad Bhagavatam) now in his maturity for the benefit of all mankind\, to which Srila Vyasadeva agreed. He presented the glories of Krsna and His many incarnations just after the departure of Lord Krsna from this world. (Excerpts from Srimad Bhagavatam 1:4:24-33.). \n“In this yuga the son of Parasara\, who is glorified as a part of Visnu and who is known as Dvaipayana\, the vanquisher of all enemies\, became Srila Vyasa. Urged by Brahma\, he undertook the task of classifying the Vedas. Srila Vyasa accepted four disciples to preserve and continue the Vedas. They were Jaimini who took care of the Sama Veda\, Sumantu – the Atharva Veda\, Vaisampayana – the Yajur Veda and Paila – the Rg Veda\, and for the Itihasa and Puranas – Lomaharsana.”(Sri Vayu Purana 60:10-16.).\nAccording to Vayu Purana it says\, “Previously there have been twenty-eight Vyasas\, but when the twenty-eighth appears\, Lord Visnu\, the most Glorious\, Great Father of the three worlds\, becomes Dvaipayana Vyasa. Then Lord Sri Krsna\, the best amongst the Yadus will be born of Vasudeva and will be known as Vasudeva. Then in due course I (Vayu) will come in the form of an ascetic and assuming the body of a religious student\, will surprise the world by means of the Lord’s ‘yoga maya’.” (Vayu Purana 23:206-208.) Actually\, this is Vayudeva announcing his appearance as Sripad Madhwacarya.(“The Life And Legacy of Ananda Tirtha Bhagavatpad – Madhwacarya\, by Jaya Tirtha Charan dasa.) \nNarayana Panditacarya has completed this seventh canto of Madhwa Vijay with a copulate of two verses called ‘Antya-Yugma’. These verses introduce one to the miniature Vaikuntha realm\, glorifying the killer of the Mura demon\, Lord Murari\, Krsna\, Who is adorned with shining golden ornaments encrusted with the best of all kinds of previous gems. Sripad Madhwacarya remembered that same Lord lying down on Ananta Sesa\, having His lotus feet embraced by the Goddess of Fortune\, Laxmi devi\, Who eternally remains with the Lord\, smiling sweetly. This is the same Lord Visnu Who\, for the ‘caturmasya’ (four months of the rainy season) takes rest\, lying for two months on one side and then two months on the other side of His lotus body. He is Narayana\, who according to Manu (Manu Smrti)\, Sri Narayana lives in the Naram ocean\, and Who is also the localised Paramatma seated within the hearts of all His separated tiny living entities. \nHigh in the Himalayan\, beyond where any mere mortal can go\, is to be found this Vaikuntha paradise. It is surrounded by ponds of full blown lotuses. The lotuses in these ponds are innumerable\, nay unlimited\, the most fragrant and indestructible. The sages and rshis who reside there make them into garlands for the Lord. Around these lakes are trees that constantly bear flowers\, blossoming\, sweet fragrant branches with fragrant flowers and fruits. These forest flowers adorn the captivating beauty of the Lord. \nSripad Madhwacarya could see all this from where he was standing looking to the north to the abode of Srila Vyasadeva. After his journey had neared it’s end\, and after crossing the Himalayas\, Sripad Madhwacarya could see quite clearly the ‘ashram’ of Vedavyasa surrounded by jujube trees. That place is definitely not of this world; the whole ‘ashram’ was effulgent. Though up in the Himalayas\, there was no biting cold or rain or snow. The trees and bushes there\, which are way above the normal ‘tree line’\, were none less than forests. As there was no unpleasant wind\, rain or cold\, also the sun was warm and comfortable. In the trees that touched the sky\, innumerable beautiful birds nested and sung. Under those shade trees all the renowned ‘brahmins’\, who were famous for performing huge sacrifices\, sat\, transfixed in meditation on the lotus feet of the Lord\, Who resides in that place. In the surrounding areas\, one could see pure white swans\, whose necks entwined with the stems of blue\, white and pink lotuses. \nMadhwa could recognise many great and famous Vaisnavas sitting around in the ashram of Srila Vyasadeva. When those pure Vaisnavas saw Sripad Madhwacarya approach the ‘ashram’\, they enquired as to who this saintly person was. “Marked with thirty two auspicious markings\, lotus eyed\, moon-like face\, long arms and a golden complexion\, no doubt this man enhances even Vaikuntha. There is no sign of exertion\, and his face shows that his mind is fearless.” “Is this person coming to this ‘ashram’ in the guise of a ‘sannyasi’\, the four faced Lord Brahma\, or is it Mukhyaprana?” \nMadhwa walked quickly due to his intense devotion. Seated under a jujube tree was Srila Vyasadeva. The ‘jujube’ tree was a representation of Lord Ananta Sesa\, with wide branches forming an umbrella which had jewels in the form of bright and fragrant flowers\, and hoods in the form of branches. It exactly resembled Lord Ananta Sesa with His hoods encrusted with jewels jutting out in all directions forming branch-like hoods. The branches of this tree support the six ‘sattvic’ Puranas\, the Upanishad’s\, and Mahabharata\, and fruits that are sweet and full of nectar that drive away all known miseries like birth\, death\, old age and disease. These fruits cannot be obtained by those who are not devotees of the Supreme Personality of Godhead\, Lord Visnu – Krsna and Their numerous forms. \nSripad Madhwacarya approached closely the sages\, who\, with matted locks of hair on their heads and various Vaisnava ’tilaka’ on their foreheads and bodies\, sat with clean white sacred threads draped over their left shoulders. They had all transcended lust\, anger\, greed\, false pride\, the pushing’s of the senses\, and thoughts of trying to enjoy in the material world separately from the supreme enjoyer\, Sri Krsna. All natural opulence was there. They were all adorned with garlands and saffron coloured sandalwood paste was auspiciously there on their bodies. \nOn a raised seat sat the preceptor of the three worlds\, the son of Satyavati\, Srila Krsna Dwaipayana Veda Vyasa. Sripad Madhwacarya had always been meditating on the Lord of his life\, his preceptor ‘guru’ within his heart seated on a white lotus. Now\, with brimming eyes\, wonder-struck as though he had just seen him for the very first time\, Madhwa drank the nectar of the vision of Vyasadeva through his eyes. \nMadhwa Vijay (7:18-59.)\, describes Vedavyasa as follows: Satyavati gave birth to that Vedavyasa after praying to Lord Brahma\, and Vyasa was conceived by the sage Parasara. Srila Vyasadeva\, who has an ocean of wonderful attributes\, is Lord Narayana Himself. Vyasadeva’s mind is compared to the milk ocean and his qualities of compassion and respect are like the Mandara mountain. By his churning appeared three mothers who were the three Vedas – Rg\, Yajur and Sama. By Vyasa the father and Veda the mother\, the demoniac qualities of Kali Yuga are checked. From Vyasadeva the white rayed cooling moon of the Puranas and the ‘parijata’ tree of the Mahabharata were given. Later\, born from it’s own nectar\, appeared the Brahmasutras\, and Srimad Bhagavatam. \nFrom the time of the Kuruksetra / Mahabharata war\, during which Vyasa bestowed his blessings on the Pandavas\, and even before this time\, Vyasa walked this earth to protect knowledge of the Vedas\, helping those devotees who have knowledge of that person who the Vedas are centred around. That is Lord Sri Krsna\, Who is known as ‘Vedanta Krt’\, the compiler of ‘Vedanta’\, and ‘Veda Vit’\, the knower of the Vedas. In Bhagavad-Gita 10:37.\, Krsna Himself says\, “Of sages I am Vyasa.” \nVyasa\, still living in Badrikasrama to this day for eternity with his pure devotees\, it says\, gave up this Kali Yuga for his Vaikuntha realm just as the sun gives up the sky for the coming of night. Vyasa is seated on an excellent blackish Krsna deer skin Madhwa recalls\, as he prostrated himself at the lotus feet of Vyasa. Taking the dust from Vyasadeva’s feet he placed the sacred dust upon his own head. Sripad Madhwacarya was in ecstasy\, standing offering respects to Vyasa\, the best of sages\, whose feet are adorned with the marks of the flag\, thunderbolt\, goad for driving elephants\, and lotus\, they are naturally auspiciously tinged with red and have the repute to be red due to evaporating any material desires that may come to the minds of Vyasadeva’s devotees. \nThe nails of those lotus feet gleam and remove darkness\, both of an internal nature by their purifying association and remembrance\, and externally by their bright lustre. If\, by material comparison of age one would think that the old hands of the sage Vyasa would be knotted\, no\, they are smooth and soft\, with long delicate fingers completely free from stress and diseases\, such as knots coming from arthritis. \nVyasadeva’s two knees\, which are large\, round and joined to his long shins\, are free from fault. These legs of Vyasa\, which are free from fault\, account for a basis of good conduct even to those who are inferior in knowledge and devotion. Srila Vyasadeva’s yoga-pattika waist band\, aid his firm sitting posture. The lotus waist of Vyasa maintains and fulfils all the devotees\, it is amazing that all the pure spiritual desires of the devotees are fulfilled by taking shelter at the waist of Vyasa. This waist is covered by a sacred Krsna deer skin\, hiding his deep and delicate navel. Vyasa’s broad chest and broad mind support the pure white sacred thread\, and Brahmasutras respectively. Madhwa Vijay (7:34.)\, states that it has been well substantiated by Vedavyasa that Caturmukha Brahma is the son of Garbhadaksayi Visnu\, being born from a lotus sprouting from the Lord’s lotus navel. This world has no equal or superior in all the three worlds. Brahma gave his ‘Kaustubhamani’\, gem to Vedavyasa and that acts like a victory flag hanging around the neck of Vyasa.\nThe story in brief follows that once when Prajapati Brahma was in the association of Vedavyasa and one thousand sages\, Srila Vyasa made a statement saying that he would always prove the superiority of Visnu Tattva at all times. The thousand sages took up the challenge and threw at Vedavyasa thousands of questio6ns simultaneously. Vyasadeva answered each question one by one perfectly all at the same time. Amazed at the victory of the literary incarnation of Lord Visnu\, Brahma presented the Kaustubha gem to Srila Vyasa.\nIn Srila Vyasadeva’s hands he holds a conchshell and a disc\, his hands are again soft pinkish red\, his arms are robust\, round and powerful. There is no comparison to the broadness of these limbs. By the tip of Vyasadeva’s right hand he bestows ‘divya jnana’ – transcendental knowledge to his devotees\, and with the same tip of the same hand removes the darkness borne of ignorance simultaneously just like thunder and lightning. His left hand is placed on his knee. By this ‘mudra’\, gesture all fear for the dangerous struggle for material existence is destroyed. Vyasadeva’s neck is marked with the three lines of a conchshell from which only ‘sabda brahman’ or transcendental sound vibration\, in the form of the main three Vedas and it’s limbs\, are coming. Seeing his moon-like face is the sweetest benediction to the eyes. Actually the moon-like face of the best of sages is compared to groups of full moons\, each being completely free form even the smallest blemish. Srila Vyasadeva’s lotus mouth and teeth are compared to a new row of pearls which shine forth from inside of a perfect ruby. These pearl-like teeth are seen decorated by a gentle smile surrounded by soft ruby red lips. To hear the speech of the literary incarnation of the Lord at once fills one’s heart with transcendental knowledge\, just as when the thousand wells in the form of sages became flooded with answers as the River Sarasvati replenishes the best of wells during the rainy season. \nAs Srila Vyasadeva approached Sripad Madhwacarya with a smile on his face\, his wide lotus eyes looked unblinking at him\, and Vyasa embraced the powerful Sripad Madhwacarya and picked him up off the floor\, clean as one would one’s small son. The powerful partial expansion of Mukhyaprana who previously played the mighty Hanuman and Bhima\, felt blessed as his ‘guru’\, Srila Vyasadeva\, lovingly embraced him\, and the sages smiled affectionately.\nSripad Madhwacarya prayed to his Lord after seeing the sprig of Tulasi leaf and ‘manjari’ tucked behind the right ear of Vyasa\, “Please don’t let me become jealous of this Tulasi sprig and garland of lotus flowers that adorn your body. They are supremely fortunate. Please don’t let them rob me of my position of being so close to you. Wherever I am\, always allow me to remain this close to you by always being absorbed in you.” \nSripad Madhwacarya could now fully appreciate standing there in the shadow of his ‘guru’\, that actually Srila Vyasadeva was looking after the welfare of the entire world. Just by a movement of his eyebrows everything was taking place. The creation\, maintenance and destruction of all the three worlds in fact is going on by his design. He is the same Visnu Tattva Lord who maintains as Gunavataras along with Lord Brahma\, the creator\, who was born from a lotus\, and Lord Shiva\, the destroyer of these material worlds. Coming in contact with the material mode of passion\, Prajapati creates under the direction of Lord Visnu. Lord Visnu Himself maintains the three worlds\, the unlimited universes\, in one form sleeping as Karanadakasayi Visnu\, in another form as Garbhadaksayi Visnu lying down on His serpent couch Anantasesa\, and as the localised form of Paramatma seated within the region of the heart of every living being as the witness. Effortlessly Lord Visnu is the Supreme Enjoyer\, and not a blade of grass moves without His knowing or sanction. \nsrsti-hetu yei murti prapance avatare\nsei isvara murti ‘avatara’ nama dhare\nmayatita paravyome savara avasthana\nvisve ‘avatari’ dhare ‘avatara’ nama \n“The ‘avatara’ of incarnation of Godhead\, descends from the kingdom of God for material manifestations. And the particular form of the Personality of Godhead who so descends is called an incarnation\, or ‘avatara’. Such incarnations are situated in the spiritual world\, the kingdom of God. When they descend to the material creation\, They assume the name ‘avatara’.”\nAs such\, there are various kinds of ‘avataras’\, such as ‘purusavataras’\, ‘gunavataras’\, ‘lilavataras’\, ‘shaktyaveshavataras’\, ‘manvantara-avataras’ and ‘yugavataras’ all appearing on schedule all over the universe. \neko devo nitya-lilanurakto bhakta vyapi hrdy antaratma \n“The one Supreme Personality of Godhead is eternally engaged in many\, many transcendental forms in relationship with His unalloyed devotees.” \nSripad Madhwacarya again drank the nectar of seeing this ‘shaktyavesha avatara’ of Lord Visnu with a resplendent blue hue like that of the Indranila gem\, personally before him\, standing on a mountain resembling an emerald\, lush and green\, above the natural barrier of the Himalayas. Srila Vyasadeva was wearing tilak of ‘urdhva pundra’ on the twelve places of His body\, which are glorified throughout the Vedic literatures as being “Two straight lines of Lord Hari’s abode are drawn at the root of the nose and reach to the top of the forehead\, the space between which is Lord Vishnu’s abode\, and is more than a finger’s breadth between and slightly wider at the top. Each of these two straight lines is only the thickness of a grain of rice and the breadth of four fingers. That is the abode or temple of Lord Visnu. Sadaishiva and Brahma reside on either side of the central space and Laxmi stays with Narayan in the middle.” Seeing this and the red mark made of the ash of plantain flowers and turmeric mixed together resembling rubies\, between the two lines\, Madhwa relished again and again the sight of Vyasa.\n“My Lord\, I am so much blessed by seeing You\, Your red matted locks of hair and Your hue which resembles a new monsoon cloud\, full of depth\, with illumination like lightning. Oh my Lord\, though I have recorded many of Your auspicious features and qualities\, actually to describe You\, though counting incessantly the endless good qualities that are emanating from even the nail of the little toe of Your lotus feet\, such is my frustration. Though You are situated far beyond this material world and it’s covering\, by Your mercy You have allowed me to approach You. Completely transcending all known boundaries\, You have appeared to me and allowed me to come here to take ‘darshan’ of You\, just to fulfil the plan chalked out by You. In obeisances\, my body is bent in devotion to You. With folded hands I offer my humble prayers.”\nWith His loving outstretched arms\, Vedavyasa\, the son of Parasara Muni\, gently lifted Madhwa up from his prostrated obeisances and again\, with a smiling face\, embraced him. \nMadhva Vijay (8:5.). says that Madhwacarya belongs to a class of devotees calle Rju which are the best of the ‘devas’. These Rjus are even superior to the Rudras\, who\, by the grace of Vyasa\, were bestowed with knowledge of the Absolute. The Rjus are one hundred in number\, and after being given the post of Vayu\, they become eligible for the post of Brahma. All of the Rjus are equally great\, but they all are superior to Rudra and others. \nMadhwa Vijay (7:53.)\, notes that Vyasadeva and Sripad Madhwacarya – Visnu and Vayu – are here compared with the powerful current of the sister of Yamaraja\, Yamuna devi\, whose mighty but gentle waters join the water of a golden river. The mighty waters of the Yamuna are compared to the dark blue lustre of Vedavyasa\, while Sripad Madhwacarya is compared to a golden river who is being embraced by the dark blue waters of Vyasa. Previously these two great personalities embraced before. At that time they were dressed in royal clothing as Krsna and Bhimasena.\nAll the great sages in the assembly at Vyasadeva’s ‘ashram’ honoured Madhwa with great respect. Vyasadeva gave Madhwa a special seat of honour next to Himself and in a very warm way\, the two saviours of degradation of Vaisnava philosophy started to speak of Sripad Madhwacarya’s urgent mission. Sri Krsna Dwaipayana Vyasa and Sripad Madhwacarya discussed all kinds of Vedic literatures\, Vedas\, Mahabharata\, the ‘Sattvic Puranas’\, Brahma Sutras\, and the Pancaratras\, which are all very dear to Vaisnava. \nMadhwa Vijay (8:6.)\, agrees that Lord Narayana Himself directed Madhwa to come to the hermitage of Srila Vyasa.\nVedavyasa then took Sripad Madhwacarya to meet with the other form of the Lord residing there. Madhwa Vijay (8:7.)\, describes how the humble Purna Prajna Tirtha – Madhwa saw Lord Narayan\, the original person\, dressed in tree bark with a ‘munja’ grass belt. His effulgence that surround His beautiful matted locks is compared to being like the best of ‘yajnic’ fires\, pure\, bright and free from smoke.\nThat Lord\, Who is always Dhira (self controlled and sober)\, and Who is Atmarama (self satisfied)\, Who is Acyuta (infallible and free from the allurements of the sense objects)\, He is free from all defects\, yet with all these opulence’s is happy to reside in the hermitage as a recluse and perform penance. “O Adhoksaja Krsna\, Who is unobtainable to those of demerit\, now I stand before You. You are the same Lord of Brahma born of Your lotus navel. By Your potency of Abhimani You made the Mahatattva\, impregnated it by Your energy and placed there goodness\, passion and ignorance. Along with this He created Rudra from Brahma and the tattva of Ahamkara which is threefold – the Vaikarika – Deities\, the Taijasa – entities born of semen\, and the ‘tamasa’ – the five gross elements (earth\, eater\, fire\, air and sky). From this He made the ‘jagad anda’\, the cosmic egg in which reside the fourteen worlds. Lord Narayan\, You create\, maintain and destroy everything\, then effortlessly inhabit those fourteen worlds with varieties of entities – the demigods\, ‘gandharvas’ – servants of the ‘devas’\, humans\, demons who have such masters as Prajapati Brahma\, Mukhyaprana (Vayudeva)\, Garuda\, Rudra and Devendra. Those living entities are given\, according to their natures\, places of residence. There are the ‘uttama jivas’ or ‘nitya siddhas’\, Your pure devotees who only have thoughts for you. The ‘nitya samsarins’\, who wander in the cycle of birth and death\, are basically innocent\, but just foolishly follow their lusty desires. And the ‘tamoyogyas’\, who are hell bent\, mischievous\, wicked and best avoided\, for their destination is to practically stay in hell for time immemorial.” \nIn Sri Madhwa Vijay (8:14.)\, whilst standing directly in front of Srila Vyasadeva and Lord Narayana at Uttara Badri\, Sripad Madhwacarya pondered over the many forms that Lord Narayana had taken. This is the mystic potency of the Lord for He can be both in the past in one’s memory\, and present before one at the same instant\, in full. At any moment with all His retinue around Him acting out the pastimes\, of previous lilas in the eternally present.\nMadhwa realising this then prostrated himself at the lotus feet of Lord Narayana\, as in his mind went over the endless pastimes of the Lord. He was directly in the association of his ‘guru’ (Srila Vyasadeva)\, and now had the honour of seeing Lord Narayana face to face. Lord Narayana’s affection poured to the pure hearted Madhwa who was sitting\, looking and relishing. He was so honoured to sit near these two whilst offering respectful prostrations\, sitting and standing\, Madhwa dwelt on His Lords.
URL:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/event/guru-vyasa-purnima-29th-july-2026/
CATEGORIES:Upcoming event
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260729
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260730
DTSTAMP:20260417T045229
CREATED:20260212T122153Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260402T064341Z
UID:48499-1785283200-1785369599@www.iskconpunjabibagh.com
SUMMARY:Disappearance Day of Srila Sanatana Goswami 29th July 2026
DESCRIPTION:Sanatana Goswami\, the elder brother of Srila Rupa Goswami\, was the seniormost among the six Goswamis of Vrndavana.
URL:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/event/disappearance-day-of-srila-sanatana-goswami-29th-july-2026/
CATEGORIES:Upcoming event
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260730
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260731
DTSTAMP:20260417T045229
CREATED:20260212T122403Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260212T122403Z
UID:48500-1785369600-1785455999@www.iskconpunjabibagh.com
SUMMARY:First Month of Caturmasya Begins 30th July 2026
DESCRIPTION:First month: No leafy vegetables\, such as spinach\, salads of all types\, cabbages of all types\, kale\, leafy herbs like coriander\, mint\, parsley\, curry and powdered leafy herbs and teas. \nCaturmasya stands for ‘four months’. It is the period between sayana and uttana ekadasis. The scriptures refer to this period as the duration of Lord Visnu’s sleep in this universe. \nThe main goal of observing Caturmasya is to decrease attachment to material things and to increase devotion to Krishna. \nSrila Prabhupada writes in Caitanya Caritamrta\, “Caturmasya should be observed by all sections of the population. It does not matter whether one is a grihasta or a sanyasi. The observation is obligatory to all ashramas.” He further explains how to observe the vow:  “This is not very difficult. In the month of Sravana one should not eat spinach (green leafy vegetables of the nature)\, in the month of Bhadra one should not eat yogurt (yogurt used as binding agent for cake is allowed)\, and in the month of Asvina one should not drink milk (milk sweets\, milk by-products are fine). One should not eat fish or other non-vegetarian food during the month of Kartik. Masura dal and urad dal being high in protein is also considered non-vegetarian.” Thus during caturmasya one should practice to give up all food intended for sense enjoyment. However\, maha-prasad\, though containing restricted item can be honoured! \nIt is stated in Hari Bhakti Vilasa 15/113 that ‘after properly praying to the Supreme Lord near Him\, one should properly take a vow to follow the proper rules and regulations and process of caturmasya to increase one’s devotion to Lord Sri Krishna.’
URL:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/event/first-month-of-caturmasya-begins-30th-july-2026/
CATEGORIES:Upcoming event
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260803
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260804
DTSTAMP:20260417T045229
CREATED:20260216T063629Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260216T063629Z
UID:48580-1785715200-1785801599@www.iskconpunjabibagh.com
SUMMARY:Disappearance Day of Srila Gopala Bhatta Goswami 3rd Aug 2026
DESCRIPTION:Sri Gopala Bhatta Goswami appeared in Sri Rangam\, South India. Lord Caitanya once stayed four months in his home\, & converted the family to Gaudiya Vaisnavism. A mere boy at this time\, Gopala personally served the Lord.
URL:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/event/disappearance-day-of-srila-gopala-bhatta-goswami-3rd-aug-2026/
CATEGORIES:Upcoming event
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Srila-Gopala-Bhatta-Goswami.jpg
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260806
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260807
DTSTAMP:20260417T045229
CREATED:20260216T063800Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260216T063800Z
UID:48582-1785974400-1786060799@www.iskconpunjabibagh.com
SUMMARY:Disappearance Day of Srila Lokanatha Goswami 6th Aug 2026
DESCRIPTION:Lokanatha Goswami was a personal associate of Lord Caitanya. Lord Caitanya ordered him and Bhugarbha Goswami to find the lost holy places of Vrndavana. Years later\, the six Goswamis came to Vrndavana and continued this work.
URL:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/event/disappearance-day-of-srila-lokanatha-goswami-6th-aug-2026/
CATEGORIES:Upcoming event
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Srila-Lokanatha-Goswami.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260807
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260808
DTSTAMP:20260417T045229
CREATED:20260216T064006Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260216T064006Z
UID:48584-1786060800-1786147199@www.iskconpunjabibagh.com
SUMMARY:The Incorporation of ISKCON in New York 7th Aug 2026
DESCRIPTION:Srila Prabhupada founded ISKCON\, the International Society for Krishna Consciousness\, in 1966.
URL:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/event/the-incorporation-of-iskcon-in-new-york-7th-aug-2026/
CATEGORIES:Upcoming event
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Prabhupada.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260809
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260810
DTSTAMP:20260417T045229
CREATED:20260216T070117Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260216T070117Z
UID:48586-1786233600-1786319999@www.iskconpunjabibagh.com
SUMMARY:Kamika Ekadashi 9th Aug 2026
DESCRIPTION:The saintly king Yudhisthira maharaj said\, “Oh Supreme Lord\, I have heard from You the glories of fasting on Deva-sayani Ekadashi\, which occurs during the light fortnight of the month of Ashadha. Now I would like to hear from You the glories of the Ekadashi that occurs during the dark fortnight (krishna paksha) of the month of Shravana (July – August). Oh Govindadeva\, please be merciful to me and explain its glories. Oh Supreme Vasudeva\, I offer my most humble obeisances unto You.” \nThe Supreme Lord\, Shri Krishna\, replied\, “Oh King\, please listen attentively as I describe the auspicious influence of this Holy fast (vrata) day\, which removes all sins. Narada Muni once asked Lord Brahma about this same topic. ‘Oh regent of all beings\,’ said Naradji\, ‘Oh you who sit upon a water born lotus throne\, please tell me the names of the Ekadashi that occurs during the dark fortnight of the sacred month of Shravana. Please also tell me which Deity is to be worshipped on that Holy day\, the process one must follow to observe it\, and the merit it awards.’ \n“Lord Brahma replied\, ‘My dear son Narada\, for the benefit of all humanity I shall happily tell you everything you wish to know\, for just hearing the glories of the Kamika Ekadashi bestows merit equal to that obtained by one who performs a horse sacrifice. Certainly\, great merit is attained by one who worships\, and who also meditates on the lotus feet of the four-armed Lord Gadadhara\, who holds conchshell\, disc\, club and lotus in His hands and who is also known as Shridhara\, Hari\, Vishnu\, Madhava\, and MadhusUdana. And the blessings achieved by such a person / devotee\, who worships Lord Vishnu exclusively are far greater than those achieved by one who takes a sacred bath in the Ganges at Kashi (Varanasi)\, in the forest of NaimishAraNya\, or at Pushkara\, which is the only place on the planet where I am formally worshipped. \nBut one who observes this Kamika Ekadashi and also worships Lord Shri Krishna achieves greater merit than one who has darshana of Lord KedAranAtha in the HimAlayas\, or one who bathes at Kurukshetra during a solar eclipse\, or one who donates the whole Earth in charity\, including its forests and oceans\, or one who bathes in the Gandaki River (where the sacred Shaligrams are found) or the GodAvari River on a full moon (purnima) day that falls on a Monday when Leo (Simha) and Jupiter (Guru) are conjoined (conjunct). \n“Observing Kamika Ekadashi bestows the same merit as donating a milk-cow and her auspicious calf\, along with their feed. On this all auspicious day\, whosoever worships Lord Sri Shridhara-deva\, Vishnu\, is glorified by all the devas\, Gandharvas\, Pannagas\, and NAgas. \n“Those who are afraid of their past sins and completely immersed in sinful materialistic life should at least observe this best of Ekadashis according to their ability and thus attain liberation. This Ekadashi is the purest of all days and the most powerful for removing sins of the native. Oh Narada ji\, Lord Shri Hari Himself once said about this Ekadashi\, “One who fasts on Kamika Ekadashi attains much more merit than one who studies all the spiritual literatures.” \n“Anyone who fasts on this particular day remains awake throughout the night will never experience the anger of Yamaraja\, the king of death personified. It has been seen that whoever observes Kamika Ekadashi will not have to suffer future births\, and in the past too\, many Yogis of devotion who fasted on this day went to the spiritual world. One should therefore follow in their auspicious footsteps and strictly observe a fast on this most auspicious of Ekadashis. \n“Whosoever worships Lord Shri Hari with Tulasi leaves is freed from all implication of sin. Indeed\, he lives untouched by sin\, as the lotus leaf\, although in the water\, is untouched by it. Whosoever offers Lord Shri Hari but a single leaf from the sacred Tulasi tree (occillium basilcum sanctum) attains as much merit as one who gives away in charity two hundred grams of gold and eight hundred grams of silver. The Supreme Personality of Godhead is more pleased by one who offers Him a single Tulasi leaf than by one who worships Him with pearls\, rubies\, topaz\, diamonds\, lapis lazuli\, sapphires\, gomedA stones (gomaz)\, cat’s eye gems\, and coral. \nOne who offers Lord Keshava newly grown maNjari buds from the Tulasi plant gets rid of all the sins he has committed during this or any other lifetime. Indeed\, mere darshana of Tulasi on Kamika Ekadashi removes all sins\, and merely touching her and praying to her removes all kinds of disease. One who waters Tulasi devi need never fear the Lord of death\, Yamaraja. One who plants or transplants Tulasi on this days will eventually reside with Lord Shri Krishna in His own abode. To Srimati Tulasi devi\, who awards liberation in devotional service\, one should therefore daily offer one’s full obeisances. \n“Even Chitragupta\, Yamaraja’s secretary\, cannot calculate the merit obtained by one who offers Shrimati Tulasi-devi a perpetually burning ghee lamp. So dear is this sacred Ekadashi to the Supreme Personality of Godhead that all the forefathers of one who offers a bright ghee lamp to Lord Shri Krishna on this day ascend to the heavenly planets and drink the celestial nectar there. Whoever offers a ghee or sesame oil lamp to Shri Krishna on this day is freed from all his sins and enters the abode of Surya\, the Sun-god\, with a body as bright as ten million lamps. This Ekadashi is so powerful that if one who is unable to fast simply follows the practices as mentioned herein\, s/he is elevated to the heavenly planets\, along with all their forefathers. \n“Oh Maharaj Yudhisthira\,” Lord Shri Krishna concluded\, “…these were the words of prajapathi Brahma to his son Narada Muni concerning the incalculable glories of this Kamika Ekadashi\, which removes all sins. This sacred day nullifies even the sin of killing a Brahmana or the sin of killing an unborn child in the womb\, and it promotes one to the spiritual world by making one supremely meritorious.\nOne who kills the innocent\, i.e.\, a brahmin (Brahmana)\, a child in the womb\, a pious and spotless woman\, etc.\, and then later hears about the glories of Kamika Ekadashi will be relieved of the reaction to one’s sins. However\, one should NOT think beforehand that one can kill a Brahmin or other innocent folk and then go unpunished simply by hearing of this Ekadashi. Such knowing commission of sin is an abomination. \nWhosoever hears these glories of the Kamika Ekadashi with faith becomes free of all sins and returns home\, back to Godhead – Vishnu-loka\, Vaikuntha. \nThus ends the narration of the glories of the Shravana-krshna Ekadashi\, or Kamika Ekadashi\,\nfrom the Brahma-Vaivarta Purana.
URL:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/event/kamika-ekadashi-9th-aug-2026/
CATEGORIES:Upcoming event
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DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260816
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260817
DTSTAMP:20260417T045229
CREATED:20260307T090159Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260402T064405Z
UID:49329-1786838400-1786924799@www.iskconpunjabibagh.com
SUMMARY:Disappearance Day of Srila Raghunandan Thakura 16th Aug 2026
DESCRIPTION:Raghunandan Thakura was the son of the great devotee Mukunda Dasa.
URL:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/event/disappearance-day-of-srila-raghunandan-thakura-16th-aug-2026/
CATEGORIES:Upcoming event
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DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260816
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260817
DTSTAMP:20260417T045229
CREATED:20260307T090637Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260402T064419Z
UID:49331-1786838400-1786924799@www.iskconpunjabibagh.com
SUMMARY:Disappearance Day of Srila Vamsidasa Babaji 16th Aug 2026
DESCRIPTION:Vamsidasa Babaji Maharaja was a paramahamsa devotee who sometimes lived in Navadvipa at the time of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura.
URL:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/event/disappearance-day-of-srila-vamsidasa-babaji-16th-aug-2026/
CATEGORIES:Upcoming event
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260823
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260824
DTSTAMP:20260417T045229
CREATED:20260307T091128Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260307T091128Z
UID:49333-1787443200-1787529599@www.iskconpunjabibagh.com
SUMMARY:Pavitropana Ekadashi 23rd Aug 2026
DESCRIPTION:Shri Yudhisthira Maharaja said\, “Oh Madhusudana\, Oh killer of the Madhu demon\, please be merciful to me and describe to me the Ekadashi that occurs during the light fortnight of the month of Shravana (July-August).” The Supreme Lord\, Sri Krishna\, replied\, “Yes\, Oh king\, I shall happily narrate its glories to you\, for just by hearing about this sacred Ekadashi one attains the merit of performing a horse sacrifice. \n“At the dawn of Dvarpara-yuga there lived a king by the name of Mahijita\, who ruled the kingdom of Mahismati-puri. Because he had no son\, his entire kingdom seemed utterly cheerless to him. A married man who has no son gains no happiness in this life or the next. \nThe Sanskrit word for ‘son’ is putra. Pu is the name of a particular hell\, and tra means ‘to deliver.’ Thus the word putra means ‘a person who delivers one from the hell named Pu.’ Therefore every married man should produce at least one son and train him properly; then the father will be delivered from a hellish condition of life. But this injunction does not apply to the serious devotees of Lord Vishnu or Krishna\, for the Lord becomes their son\, father\, and mother. \nFurthermore\, Chanakya Pandita says\, \nsatyam mata pita jnanam\ndharmo bhrata daya sakha\nsantih patni ksama putrah\nsadete mama vandhavah \n“The truth is my mother\, knowledge is my father\, my occupational duty is my brother\, kindness is my friend\, tranquillity is my wife\, and forgiveness is my son. These six are my family members.” Among the twenty-six leading qualities of a devotee of the Lord\, forgiveness is the topmost. Therefore devotees should make an extra endeavour to develop this quality. Here Chanakya says “forgiveness is my son\,” and thus a devotee of the Lord\, even though he may be on the path of renunciation\, may observe Putrada Ekadashi and pray to attain this kind of “son.” \nFor a long time this king tried very hard to obtain an heir\, but to no avail. Seeing his years advancing ever onwards\, King Mahijita became increasingly anxious. One day he told an assembly of his advisers: ‘I have committed no sin in this life\, and there is no ill-gotten wealth in my treasury. I have never usurped the offerings to the demigods or brahmanas. When I waged war and conquered kingdoms\, I followed the rules and regulations of the military art\, and I have protected my subjects as if they were my own children. I punished even my own relatives if they broke the law\, and if my enemy was gentle and religious I welcomed him. Oh twice-born souls\, although I am a religious and faithful follower of the Vedik standards\, still my home is without a son. Kindly tell me the reason for this.’ \n“Hearing this\, the king’s brahmana advisers discussed the subject among themselves\, and with the aim of benefiting the king they visited the various ashrams of the great sages. At last they came upon a sage who was austere\, pure\, and self-satisfied\, and who was strictly observing a vow of fasting. His senses were completely under control\, he had conquered his anger\, and he was expert at performing his occupational duty. Indeed\, this great sage was expert in all the conclusions of the Vedas\, and he had extended his life span to that of Lord Brahma himself. His name was Lomasa Rishi\, and he knew part\, present\, and future. After each kalpa passed\, one hair would fall out of his body ( One kalpa\, or twelve hours of Lord Brahma\, equals 4\,320\,000\,000 years.) All the king’s brahmana advisers very happily approached him one by one to offer their humble respects. \n“Captivated by this great soul\, King Mahijita’s advisers offered obeisances to him and said very respectfully\, ‘Only because of our great good fortune\, Oh sage\, have we been allowed to see you.’\n“Lomasa Rishi saw them bowing down to him and replied\, ‘Kindly let me know why you have come here. Why are you praising me? I must do all I can to solve your problems\, for sages like me have only one interest: to help others. Do not doubt this.’ \nLomasa Rishi had all good qualities because he was a devotee of the Lord. As stated in the Srimad-Bhagavatam (5:18:12)\, \nyasyasti bhaktir bhagavaty akinchana\nsarvair gunais tatra samasate surah\nharav abhaktasya kuto mahad-guna\nmanorathenasati dhavato bahih \n“In one who has unflinching devotional service to Krishna\, all the good qualities of Krishna and the demigods are consistently manifest. However\, he who has no devotion to the Supreme Personality of Godhead has no good qualifications because he is engaged by mental concoction in material existence\, which is the external feature of the Lord.” \n“The king’s representatives said\, ‘We have come to you\, Oh exalted sage\, to ask for your help in solving a very serious problem. Oh sage\, you are like Lord Brahma. Indeed\, there is no better sage in the entire world. Our king\, Mahijita\, is without a son\, though he has sustained and protected us as if we were his sons. Seeing him so unhappy on account of being sonless\, we have become very sad\, Oh sage\, and therefore we have entered the forest to perform severe austerities. By our good fortune we happened upon you. Everyone’s desires and activities become successful just by your darshana. Thus we humble ask that you tell us how our kind king can obtain a son.’ \n“Hearing their sincere plea\, Lomasa Rishi absorbed himself in deep meditation for a moment and at once understood the king’s previous life. Then he said\, ‘Your ruler was a merchant in his past life\, and feeling his wealth insufficient\, he committed sinful deeds. He traveled to many villages to trade his goods. Once\, at noon on the day after the Ekadashi that comes during the light fortnight of the month of Jyeshtha (Trivikrama – May-June)\, he became thirsty while traveling from place to place. He came upon a beautiful pond on the outskirts of a village\, but just as he was about to drink at the pond a cow arrived there with her new-born calf. These two creatures were also very thirsty because of the heat\, but when the cow and calf started to drink\, the merchant rudely shoved them aside and selfishly slaked his own thirst. This offense against a cow and her calf has resulted in your king’s being without a son now. But the good deeds he performed in his previous life have given him rulership over an undisturbed kingdom.’ \n“Hearing this\, the king’s advisers replied\, ‘Oh renowned rishi\, we have heard that the Vedas say one can nullify the effects of one’s past sins by acquiring merit. Be so kind as to give us some instruction by which our king’s sins can be destroyed; please give him your mercy so that a prince will take birth in his family.’ \n“Lomasa Rishi said\, ‘There is an Ekadashi called Putrada\, which comes during the light fortnight of the month of Shravana. On this day all of you\, including your king\, should fast and stay awake all night\, strictly following the rules and regulations. Then you should give the king whatever merit you gain by this fast. If you follow these instructions of mine\, he will surely be blessed with a fine son.’ \n“All the king’s advisers became very pleased to hear these words from Lomasa Rishi\, and they all offered him their grateful obeisances. Then\, their eyes bright with happiness\, they returned home. \n“When the month of Shravana arrived\, the king’s advisers remembered the advice of Lomasa Rishi\, and under their direction all the citizens of Mahismati-puri\, as well as the king\, fasted on Ekadashi. And on the next day\, DvAdasi\, the citizens dutifully offered their accrued merit to him. By the strength of all this merit\, the queen became pregnant and eventually gave birth to a most beautiful son. \n“O Yudhisthira\,” Lord Krishna concluded\, “the Ekadashi that comes during the light fortnight of the month of Shravana has thus rightfully become famous as Putrada [“bestower of a son”]. Whoever desires happiness in this world and the next should certainly fast from all grains and legumes on this holy day. Indeed\, whoever simply hears the glories of Putrada Ekadashi becomes completely free of all sins\, is blessed with a good son\, and surely ascends to heaven after death.” \nThus ends the narration of the glories of Shravana-sukla Ekadashi\, or Putrada Ekadashi\, from the Bhavishya Purana.
URL:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/event/pavitropana-ekadashi-23rd-aug-2026/
CATEGORIES:Upcoming event
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