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Despite the Corona crisis and lock-down, the devotees in Simhachalam/Germany celebrated a very extraordinary Nrsimha Caturdasi festival this year. It almost appeared to be the Lord's personal and special arrangement in reciprocation to fulfill the desires of His faithful servants! It may have very well been the only true festival on this occasion this year in ISKCON world-wide...!
Reflecting back on my stay in Mayapur during the month of January and February, it was a very eventful, action-packed and blissful time. Over five weeks we offered the usual five courses of "Sheltering Relationships", "The Vanaprastha Ashram", "Being in Harmony With the Other Gender", "Family Life as an Ashram" and "Our Children Are our Future". All courses were well attended, and we had stimulating discussions. On Fridays we established the tradition of distributing some little maha prasadam in the break, which created a personal atmosphere and completed the loving exchanges. I also had an opportunity to distribute my two books.
People eagerly reciprocated by showing their appreciation and gratitude in various ways for the knowledge and insights they received. Some devotees attended all courses, and I could sense that they found some shelter in the personal association of the group. So it was well worthwhile and satisfying to my heart. I have fallen far behind in writing my traveling diary. The last two months were action-packed and eventful, and then the Corona crisis hit....
On our arrival in Mayapur on the 8th of December it took us a few days to settle into our nice ashram at the goshala and get into a regular daily routine. My two assistants had never been to India before, so I spent some time showing them around Mayapur so they could orientate themselves. Mayapur has become a big township by now....
On my last visit to Bangladesh in mid of November, the local devotees had arranged a three-week tour for me, mainly visiting the very North of the country. Here people are more simple and poor, and even more devotionally inclined. There are so many devotees in this area - simply amazing!
I had not been to Indore and Ujjain for the last five years, so I was excited to visit those communities once again.
I spent the weekend of the 9th and 10th of November in Indore, doing several house programs on both days, and meeting many enthusiastic devotees. Since they don't get many traveling preachers to visit their community, everybody was eager and excited to have a guest, and I was well taken care off by the devotees. I also distributed many copies of my books - everyone was eagerly accepting the knowledge into their lives. I arrived in Vrindavan on the 22nd of October - just in time to join the main festivals of the Kartik season: Govardhana Puja and Srila Prabhupada's disappearance.
After visiting the devotees in Nottingham/England I traveled further to Birmingham where I spent the weekend of the 12th/13th of October associating with the devotees in programs. During my visit I was well taken care off by a nice young couple, and I effortlessly distributed the 40 copies of my books to the eager devotees. On Monday evening we had a ladies' sanga, which was well attended in lively discussions on women's empowerment.
This was my second visit to Bhaktivedanta Manor, and I had a wonderful time - one of the highlights of my humble preaching efforts during this year! The devotees eagerly received me, and already two months before my visit they had lined up a wonderful variety of programs, which were well announced and promoted. I was busy with an outreach program for newcomers, a SB class, the Sunday feast lecture, house programs, a session with the brahmacaris, a session with the bhaktins as part of their training, a program with the mentors, and a program with the brahmacarinis and bhaktins. The most effective programs were during the SB slot on Sat and Sun, where I was invited to introduce my two books. Those programs always have the best attendance being on the weekend, with many more devotees watching over Mayapur TV.
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Devaki Devi Dasi's Travel DiaryDevaki Devi Dasi is sharing her realizations and adventures in her Traveling Diary.Welcome to relish this nectar! Archives
August 2020
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