After visiting the devotees in Phoenix for one week and having a great time churning various topics centered around the cultivation of bhakti, I flew to Sacramento in California to spend one week in the association of the devotees there.
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Looking out the window of the plane when flying from Dallas to Tucson, I could see that Arizona is indeed a desert state. Empty desert land, with sometimes gigantic mountains. Only rarely could I detect a township. The vastness of the continent reminded me of Australia. As a brahmacarini I was once driving from Sydney to Perth - right through the middle of Australia, the desert called Nullarbor Plain. It had taken me around four full days of driving....
It was a great honour and pleasure for me to once again visit Dallas temple - my first visit was in 2019. It is one of the first temples which Srila Prabhupada established in the United States and used to be a church - now transformed into the palace of Sri Sri Radha Kalachandji, Lord Jagannath, Baladeva and Subhadra, and Gaur Nitai. The temple room is arranged in royal style, and Their Lordships receive a high standard of worship with opulent dresses and jewelry.
After spending 10 days in Cologne offering programs and getting ready to embark on my tour around the US, I arrived at my first destination - the temple in Philadelphia.
It was my first visit to this community. I had met Mahapremavesa Prabhu in Mayapur who took part in most of my courses. And he very efficiently coordinated my visit and assisted me in many ways. The temple facilities are great – two big buildings connected through a temple room building, which were formerly a hotel. There are plenty of rooms which are rented out to devotees and favourable people, and several rooms are also being used on Sundays for children’s programs for various ages. Since the TP is in a Western body, it attracts also some Western people, so the congregation is not only from Indian descent. The heart of the temple community finds its center in their beautiful temple Deities: Their Lordships Sri-Sri Radha-Saradbihari, Lord Jagannatha, Lord Balarama, and Srimati Subhadra-devi, and Sri Sri Gaura-Nitai. The devotees had arranged a variety of programs which were very well attended and received, and we blissfully churned thoughts and realisations while enjoying each other's association. I was scheduled to visit Dubai for Gaur Purnima. It was my first visit to this part of the world, and the local leaders had arranged a variety of programs in the area. However, it all came a little different than expected....
After a couple of days, the war started to break out, and some US Military bases and ships around Dubai and other parts of the Emirates were attacked. Sometimes we heard heavy and close-by blasts taking down the missiles and drones – my host stayed near the port which was not such a safe location. So for the following two days we stayed home, and I offered all the programs online. My three months' stay in Mayapur was a busy, dynamic and blissful time, with lots of preaching engagements and programs - 5 weeks of courses, then various classes and, over and above, ecstatic festive events: the Pusya Abhishek with Radha Madhava in Their beautiful flower dress, Vasanta Panchami with Their stunning yellow outfit, Advaita Acarya's and Lord Nityananda's appearance, and the finale being the Kirtan Mela - the cherry on the cake!
HH Niranjana Maharaja's Vyasa Puja was one of the highlights for me – an opportunity to deepen my gratitude and dependence on his saintly self. He selflessly extended himself flooding our hearts with his love and devotion. On our arrival in Mayapur on the 30th of November we immediately dived into the preparations for the Holy Name Retreat at Ekachakra - our annual event of bliss and immersion into chanting the holy name - a program which over the years has become very dear to my heart.
We had a big group of 53 participants from every corner of the globe: North America, different parts of Europe, South America, Australia, Russia, Ukraine - and of course India. Every bed on the premises of the ISKCON temple at Ekachakra was booked. HH Candramauli Maharaja also joined our group and participated in the retreat, enlightening us in the morning classes in connection with the holy name. The mood was once again so wonderful - sweet and deep. Especially those participants who agreed to switch off their phones and computers for the entire retreat could enter a different reality - the holy name alone being everything.... I have been so terribly busy here in Mayapur, that I have not been able to keep up with writing....
At the end of November I visited the devotees in Trivandrum/Kerala for one week. It was my first visit to this community, and I felt immediately very much at home. Kerala seems economically better off than the rest of India – apparently the British established a good system for education, and many people work outside of India and have their houses here. The atmosphere is also more relaxed and cultured. The community of devotees is not big but has a nice and personal atmosphere, with a main temple outside of the city with beautiful Krishna Balarama and Gaur Nitai Deities, and a good number of little preaching centres and nama hatta groups. We had a nice time churning different topics at various venues, and the devotees were eagerly accepting the books I have published. I spent one week visiting the devotees in Nigdi outside of Pune enjoying life in deep discussions with eager devotees. Although the community is not huge, nevertheless a good crowd assembled for every program, and devotees eagerly accepted the books I have published. The temple is a small version of Chowpatty, and devotees cultivate the same mood here - sweet, personal, with a humble service mood....
On the 12th of November I moved on to Chennai. Also here the devotees had arranged house programs, morning programs at the temple and a seminar on the false ego on Sunday which were well attended and received. I spent two weeks during Kartik in Vrindavan, bathing in the nectar of saintly association during the morning programs while personally connecting with devotees from all around the globe during the day. Srila Prabhupada's disappearance was once again a wonderful festival, deepening our gratitude, meditation and love for Srila Prabhupada. In no other place of the world is Prabhupada's disappearance commemorated in such a festive mood and heart-moving Prabhupada Katha, with his personal quarters being transformed into an ocean of flowers....
My favorite holy place to visit is always Srila Prabhupada's quarters behind Krishna Balaram Temple - every single day I spent some time there chanting japa.... |
Devaki Devi Dasi's Travel DiaryDevaki Devi Dasi is sharing her realizations and adventures in her Traveling Diary.Welcome to relish this nectar! Archives
January 2026
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