Sri Yudhishthira Maharaj said, "Oh Janardana, what is the name of the Ekadasi that occurs during the dark fortnight (krishna paksha) of the month of Jyeshtha (May-June)?
I wish to hear from You the glories of this sacred day of Hari.
Please narrate everything to me"
Lord Sri Krishna said, "Oh king, your inquiry is wonderful because the answer will benefit the whole human society.
This Ekadasi is so sublime and meritorious that even the greatest sins can be erased by its purity.
This is literally the "birthday or descent of mother Ganges - Ganga Ma". Throughout india this festival lasts ten days beginning on the Amavasya (dark moon night) and going through to the dasami tithi (tenth phase of the Moon, the day before Pandava Nirjal Ekadasi)
"Festivals connected with rivers are essentially bathing festivals. Ganga Dussehra is celebrated on the tenth day of Jyeshtha. River Ganga is worshipped as a mother as well as a Goddess, particularly by people of Uttara Pradesh, Bihar, and Bengal through which the river flows. On this day, if a devotee is unable to visit and bathe in the river Ganga, then Ganga jal (water) kept in most Hindu homes is used for purification. A bath in the river is said to purify the bather of all sins. The Ganga is revered all over India even in places far from its course.
She was the only daughter of King Naresanarayana of Puntiya in the district of Rajsahi (now in Bangladesh).
During her childhood she was called Saci.
She was endowed with a religious temperament from youth and within a short time Saci became conversant with Vyakarana, Kavya and various scriptures.
When Saci grew up, her beauty and grace charmed everyone.
However, Saci felt no attraction for any man however handsome or wealthy he may be.
Their voices rose with the sun. It was early morning in an Indian village school.
The boys sat in neat rows behind palm-leaf manuscripts, committing their lessons to memory.
As they chanted their grammar rules, their rhetoric lessons, and their logic aphorisms, each boy chanted loud enough to hear himself over his neighbour, resulting in a blend of high-pitched voices.
This school, attended by Baladeva early in the eighteenth century, closely resembled village schools that existed in India for thousands of years.
The system had endured because it was effective, producing brilliant and disciplined scholars, and Baladeva was among the best of them.
The Chida-dadhi Mahotsav, also known as the Chipped Rice Festival of Panihati, is a yearly celebration of the pastimes of Srila Raghunatha dasa Goswami and Lord Nityananda Prabhu. Thisastonishing pastime took place on the banks of the Ganges at Panihati, which is just north of Calcutta. Lord Caitanya and his associates enjoyed many transcendental pastimes here. Chida-dadhi Mahotsav remembers how the Lord mercifully reciprocated with His devotees 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 an excerpt from Caitanya-caritamrta, Antya lila chapter 6, which describes this wonderful pastime in detail.
A special bath of Jagannath takes place on the Purnima of Jyestha month (Devasnan Purnima), to commemorate the appearance day of Lord Jagannath.
According 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.
Sri Mukunda Datta was born in the Cattagrama district, in the village of Chanhara, which is under the jurisdiction of the police station named Patiya. This village is situated ten krosas, or about twenty miles, from the home of Pundarika Vidyanidhi.
“In Vraja there were two very nice singers named Madhukantha and Madhuvrata. They appeared in caitanya-lila as Mukunda and Vasudeva Datta, who were singers in the society of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu.” When Lord Caitanya was a student, Mukunda Datta was His class friend, and they frequently engaged in logical arguments. Sometimes Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu would fight with Mukunda Datta, using tricks of logic.
There was a great devotee of Lord Caitanya known as Kholaveca Sridhara, who was a very poor man. He was doing a small business selling cups made from the leaves of plantain trees, and his income was almost nothing. Still, he was spending fifty percent of his small income on the worship of the Ganges, and with the other fifty percent he was somehow living. Lord Caitanya once revealed Himself to this confidential devotee, Kholaveca Sridhara, and offered him any opulence he liked. But Sridhara informed the Lord that he did not want any material opulence. He was quite happy in his present position and wanted only to gain unflinching faith and devotion unto the lotus feet of Lord Caitanya. That is the position of pure devotees. If they can be engaged twenty-four hours each day in devotional service they do not want anything else, not even the happiness of liberation or of becoming one with the Supreme. (A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. Nectar of Devotion. Chapter 1. Characteristics of Pure Devotional Service.)
Sri Syamananda, Srinivasa and Narottama Dasa Thakura are eternal associates of Sri Gaurasundara. For the purpose of preaching the holy message of Sri Caitanya all over the earth they appeared in this world.
Sri Syamananda Prabhu was born in Utkala. His father’s name was Sri Krsna Mandal. His mother’s name was Sri Durika. Sri Krsna Mandal had many sons and daughters who passed away before this son took birth. Because of this misfortune, Sri Krsna Mandal named the boy Dukhi.
Sri Vakreshwar Pandit was present with Sriman Mahaprabhu duringHispastimes in Navadwipa and after his acceptance of Sannyasa healsoaccompanied Him to Jagannath Puri. During the time of theLord's residence in Puri he continued to live withHim there aswell. Sri Vakreshwar Pandit took birth in the villageof Guptiparanear Triveni. He was an especiallyproficient dancer and kirtaniyaand could dance continuously for 72hours.
"I shall now summarily explain the meaning of these words. In this Pancha-tattwa, the bhakta-rupa (form of a devotee) is Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, who formerly appeared as Sri Krishna, the son of Nanda Maharaj. The bhakta-swarupa (devotional incarnation) is Lord Nityananda, who formerly appeared in Vrajabhumi as Lord Balarama. The bhaktaavatara (devotional manifestation) is Lord Advaita Acarya, who is not different from Sadaashiva. The bhataakhya (pure devotee) is Srinivasa and other great devotees as well. The bhakta-shakti (devotional energy) is Gadadhara Pandita, the foremost of brahmanas." (Gaura Ganodesh Dipika 11.)
Congratulations you have taken one giant step towards giving a sanctified healthy meal to an underprivileged Indian.
Face the fact: (Source Global Huger Index 2017)
India is world’s second largest food producer yet it is home to world second biggest undernourished population. Source FAO 2015 25 % of all hungry people worldwide live in India. 44% of Indian Children below the age of 5 are underweight. Out of Worst hunger struck 119 countries India is at 100
What does a healthy human being need?
A balanced diet is one that helps a person maintain or improve health. It includes carbohydrates, fats, vitamins, proteins, roughage, water, and minerals. The amount of these nutrients varies with gender, age, occupation, climate and region. However, at ISKCON Punjabi Bagh, we understand that a complete meal is not just numbers and formulae. It is not just chopped-up vegetables and boiled grains. It is love that is the primary constituent of a healthy meal. The same love that a mother pours while she is at work in the kitchen, the same love that a father ploughs when he is toiling in the office, and the same love that siblings share when they fight.
How does ISKCON Punjabi Bagh satisfy this hunger?
We, at ISKCON Punjabi Bagh, understand that apart from a person’s body craving for satisfaction of the stomach, the satisfaction of the person occupying that body is also of primary importance. We solve this eternal craving of the soul through World’s Largest vegetarian Non-Profit Food Relief program called the Hare Krishna Food-for-Life.
Each meal is not only delicious but is also prepared with full attention to personnel & infrastructure hygiene. The food so prepared is first offered to the almighty Supreme Personality of Godhead Sri Krishna, therefore, although its quantity remains unchanged but qualitatively it is transformed from meal to Prasadam. Such sanctified meals on the one hand fulfil the basic necessity of the body and on the other purify the consciousness of a person. The fortunate people who receive Prasadam meals develop all good human qualities such as kindness, truthfulness, cleanliness, and gain immense control over the agitations of mind. No other food item in the world can offer such spiritual benefits.
Is it really World’s Largest?
Yes, ISKCON volunteers provide up to 2,000,000 (Two Million) free meals every day. His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada, the Founder-Acharya of ISKCON, instructed his disciples that no one should sleep hungry within a 10 mile radius of a Hare Krishna centre. Keeping true to His Divine Grace’s instructions, every centre based on the available resources tries to serve nutritious meals free of cost to every person who gives the temple an opportunity to serve. This includes visitors, pilgrims, and residents of neighbouring areas. In fact, monthly processions are also accompanied by free distribution of food. Apart from this, special relief packages are designed and dispatched to areas affected by natural calamities.
Can non-ISKCON people contribute?
We are all children of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. This makes us God-brothers & God-sisters. Therefore, we encourage the more fortunate brothers and sisters to come forward and help the less fortunate ones. This can be achieved by sponsoring meals for the homeless, disadvantaged children, pilgrims and slum dwellers. We have created this web-page specifically for reaching out to people who have a big heart and a little time, energy and resources to spare. Your small contribution here can make 2 square meals possible for unprivileged brethren.
Where will my money go?
As every ISKCON temple is completely financially independent of the other, all money donated to ISKCON Punjabi Bagh temple is utilized locally within New Delhi. At times, we also travel the Indian sub-continent and distribute free Prasadam across the length and breadth of India.
No money from your donation is transferred outside the country without explicitly mentioning it. ISKCON centres worldwide manage their funds locally for the benefit of that region’s local population.
Because of this reason,currently, ISKCON Punjabi Bagh also does not accept any donations from foreign countries for the Food for Life program. In case, you are eager to contribute we suggest getting in touch with an ISKCON centre in your neighbouring area. The complete list of ISKCON centres world wide can be found here: http://centers.iskcondesiretree.com/ Hopefully, at a later time, when people all over the world have transcended the boundaries of nationality, colour, language, ethnicity and politics, we might be able to extend ourselves to help all children of God irrespective of geographical location.
I am still not sure if I want to contribute!
No Problem, we thank you for taking out time to read about the Hare Krishna Food for Life program. we suggest that you scroll through the rest of the website. It is highly probable that you will find another social cause that is worth investing your time and resources in such as education, organic farming, sustainable living and much more.