Dear Devotees, Friends and Well-Wishers,
All glories to His Divine Grace Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Goswami Thakur Prabhupada and Guru-Parampara (disciplic succession).
Please accept the blessing of my beloved Srila Gurudeva, His Divine Grace Srila Bhakti Pramode Puri Goswami Maharaj, and convey the same to all members in your congregation.
According to our tradition which was established by Srila Gurudeva , this year we are celebrating Gour-Purnima festival for 10-days from 15th (Tuesday) to 24th (Thursday) of March 2016 at our Sri Mayapur Temple, Sri Gopinath Gaudiya Math; Ishodyan, Nadia (W.B.), India. It is my humble request that you attend the programs along with all your family members and friends and make this festival glorious by your presence.
According to the words of our Guru-Varga, we can be freed from our present difficult cycle of birth and death through the Parikrama (circumambulation) of Holy Navadwip (nine-Island). In order to deliver us, our merciful Guru-Varga implemented this festival so that we get the opportunity to uplift our present spiritual life and fulfil the main purpose of this human birth.
Festival Program:
Tuesday, 15th of March, 2016:
Adhivas (the preparation day); from Sunrise to Sunset non-stop Harinam-Samkirtan in front of Srila Gurudeva’s Samadhi temple.
Evening discourses from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
Wednesday, 16th of March, 2016
We will leave our Mayapur temple at 5:00 a.m. with Mahaprabhu’s palanquin to visit the islands Antardvip and Simantadvip.
Places to be visited:
a) Sri Chaitanya Gaudiya Math (Ishodyan).
b) The house of Nandan Acharya (Sri Sri Gour-Nityananda Mandir), the place where Sri Nityananda Prabhu and Chaitanya Mahaprabhu met for the first time and started the samkirtan movement.
c) The Yoga-Pith temple, the birthplace of Sri Krishna Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.
d) The house of Srivas Pandit, Samkirtan-Rasa-Sthali, the place where Sri Krishna Chaitanya Mahaprabhu manifested Samkirtan the whole night with His close associates.
e) The house of Murari Gupta, the incarnation of Hanuman (Monkey God).
f) Sri Chaitanya Math, the parent temple of the entire Gaudiya Math. This temple was established by His Divine Grace Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Goswami Thakur Prabhupad.
g) Sri Baladeva, Sri Subhadra, Sri Jagannath temple at Sar-Danga. This place is non-different from Jagannath Puri.
h) The house of Sridhar, Sridhar Angan.
j) The Bel-Pukur (the house of Sri Krishna Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s maternal uncle). Here the four Kumaras (Sanak, Sanatan, Sanandan and Sanat Kumar) achieved perfection.
k) The Samadhi of Chand Kazi; then return to our temple.
Thursday, 17th of March, 2016
We will leave our Mayapur temple at 4.45 a.m. with Mahaprabhu’s palanquin to visit the islands Godrumdvip and Madhyadvip.
Places to be visited:
a) Sri Svananda Sukhada Kunja & Surabhi Kunja; the house and bhajan-kutir of Srila Bhaktivinode Thakur.
b) Suvarna Vihar, the palace of Suvarna Sen, a famous king in the Golden Age (Satya-Yuga), who got Sri Narada Muni’s mercy and received a vision (darshan) of the golden form of the Supreme Lord. In Mahaprabhu’s pastime Suvarna Sen appeared in the form of Buddhimanta Khan.
c) Narasimha-Palli, the place where Lord Nrisimhadeva took rest after delivering the demoniac Hiranayakashipu, the physical father of Bhakta Prahlad.
d) Hari-Hara Kshetra, the Deity of Half-Vishnu and Half-Shiva. Then we return to our Mayapur temple.
Friday, 18th of March, 2016
We will leave our Mayapur temple at 4.45 a.m. with Mahaprabhu’s palanquin in to visit the islands Koladvip, Ritudvip, Jahnudvip and Modadrumdvip.
Places to be visited:
a) The Prauda-Maya temple and Shiva-temple; presently known as PORAMATALA.
b) Sri Devananda Gaudiya Math; the place is representing the pastime of Sri Varahadev. Here five holy rivers meet together (Pancha-Veni); it is also the place of Devananda Pandit.
c) Sri Sri Gour-Gadadhara temple at Champahati and the house of the famous Vaisnava-poet Sri Jayadeva Goswami.
d) Vidyanagar, the place where all types of education were available in the Golden Age.
e) The place of Sarvabhouma Bhattacharya, the incarnation of Brihaspati, the spiritual master of the demigods.
f) Sri Jahnu-Muni’s Ashram and the house of Vrindavandas Thakur. Then we return to our Mayapur temple.
Saturday, 19th of March, 2016
Today is Amalaki Ekadasi’s fasting day. We will leave our Mayapur temple at 6.00 a.m. with Mahaprabhu’s palanquin to visit the island of Rudradvip.
Places to be visited:
Simuliya, Madhai-Ghat, Var-Kona-Ghat,
Bharadvajtila, the house of Jayadeva Goswami and
Rudradvip Gaudiya Math. Then we return to our Mayapur temple.
Sunday, 20th of March, 2016
Amalaki Ekadasi’s breakfast between 5:47 a.m. and 9:46 a.m. Today is the disappearance day of Srila Madhavendra Puri. We will observe the festival with discourses by prominent devotee speakers from 9:00 a.m. and then honor Mahaprasadam at 12:30 p.m.
Monday, 21st of March, 2016
We will leave our Mayapur temple at 5:00 a.m. by bus to visit Halishahar, the birth of place of Sri Iswara Puri, the spiritual master of Sri Krishna Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. Then we will visit Panihati, the place where Srila Raghunathdas Goswami arranged the Chira (flat-rice)-Dadhi (yogurt) festival following to order of Sriman Nityananda Prabhu. Afterwards we will return to our Mayapur temple.
Tuesday, 22nd of March, 2016
This is the Adhivas-day (preparation day) of Lord Sri Krishna Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s 530-appearance day. In order to prepare ourselves for the observance of Sri Krishna Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s appearance day tomorrow we will chant from sunrise to sunset non-stop Harinam Samkirtan congregationally in front of Srila Gurudeva’s Samadhi. Discourses will be held from 10:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. and from 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
Wednesday, 23rd of March, 2016
The 530th Appearance Day of Sri Krishna Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, the incarnation of Divine Love (Prema-Purushottam). We will fast until moonrise and then accept anukalpa (Ekadasi-prasadam).
This day we will observe as follows:
- From sunrise to sunset Harinam Samkirtan congregationally in front of Srila Gurudeva’s Samadhi.
- From 7:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. non-stop Sri Chaitanya Bhagawata discourses.
- Sri Krishna Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s bathing ceremony (Maha-Abhisekha) at 4:50 p.m. We will collect Holy Water from the Ganga river at 3:30 p.m.
Thursday, 24rd of March, 2016
Sri Jagannath Mishra Anandotsava; We will break the fast of the previous day between sunrise (5:43 a.m.) and 9:44 a.m.
