Hare Krsna Respected Guru Maharaj,
Please accept my humble obeisances at your lotus feet.
All glories to Srila Prabhupada.
All glories to Guru parampara.
Guru Dev, Below are complete travel details. I would divide it in three parts as :
A. Vrandavana (3 Nov - 13 Nov 2013)
B. Home Town with Parents (14 Nov - 25 Nov 2013)
C. Remote Village in Chhattisgarh (26 Nov - 3 Dec 2013)
A. Vrandavana (3 Nov - 13 Nov 2013)
Started from Pune on 3 Nov 2013 and reached in Vrandavan on 4 Nov 2013
Day 1 (4 Nov 2013):
1. 5:00 AM - Reached Mathura, stay at railway station till 7:25 AM
2. 8:00 AM - Reached Krsna-Balaram Temple, Vrandavan
3. 9:00 AM - Till 9:00 AM, discussion with H G Ramakant Pr and other, about temple events and activity during Kartik & Prabhupad's festival.
4. 9:30 AM - Bath + Washing cloths
5. 10:00 AM - Darshan
6. 11:15 AM - Govardhana Puja + Abhishak at temple
7. 12:30 PM - Prasadam
8. 1:00 PM - Read Prabhupada's book - "This is my request" - finished.
9. 2:30 PM - Started from Vrandavana for Govardhana for Govardhana Parikarma
10. 9:00 PM - Finished Govardhana Parikarma
11. 9:45 PM - Returned from Govardhana
12. 10:30 PM - Prasadam & went for sleep
Day 2 (5 Nov 2013):
1. 3:00 AM - Wake up, bath, Japa
2. 4:00 AM - Mangal Arti, Japa at Prabhupada's samadhi
3. till 7:30 AM - 42 rounds japa
HpS - ASA - You finished 42-rounds from 3AM!!! ! !???? [Hare Krsna! What is your secret?]
4. 7:30 AM - Guru Puja
5. 8:00 AM - SB Class
6. 10:00 AM - Prasadam, Meeting with H G Rangabihari Pr
7. 4:00 PM - Discussion with H G Gopendra Pr, H G Vaisanava Pr, H G Ramakant Pr on BG (Sloka one), NOI - Sloka one and other
8. 5:30 PM - Darshan, Lamp offering
9. 8:30 to 11:00 PM - Discussion with H G Gopendra Pr
10. 11:30 PM - Prasadam & went for sleep
So nice that you have friends in Vrndavana!
Day 3 (6 Nov 2013):
1. 3:00 AM - Wake up, bath, Japa
2. 4:00 AM - Mangal Arti, Japa at Prabhupada's samadhi
3. till 7:30 AM - 42 rounds japa
Hmmm! If not going to Mangala arati and other programs in main temple room then that is 2.3 seconds per mantra!
4. 7:30 AM - Guru Puja
5. 10:00 AM - Meeting with Pune devotees
6. 12:00 PM - Went for Vrandavana Parikrama
7. 8:30 PM - Discussion with H G Gopendra Pr on Modern Civilization & culture.
8. 11:00 PM - Prasadam & went for sleep
Note : This day, all were very busy due to Prabhu Pada's Festival so did not get time to interact more but i took more time to finish the Vrandavan
Parikram. Visited all the places & interacted with Braja vasi.
Day 4 (7 Nov 2013):
1. 3:00 AM - Wake up, bath, Japa
2. 4:00 AM - Mangal Arti, Japa at Prabhupada's samadhi
3. 8:00 AM to 1:45 PM - Attended Prabhupada Festival (all events, lectures).
4. 2:30 PM - Prasadam
5. 3:00 PM - Went outside for Shoping
6. 4:30 PM - Prasadam Packing Service.
7. 6:30 PM - Visited the Prem Mandir (Kripalu Maharaj's temple)
8. 8:00 PM - Lamp offering & Darshan
9. 9:30 PM - Prasadam
10. 9:45 PM - Discussion with H G Gopendra Pr on Current status of society & Moral, ethics.
11. 11:00 PM - went for sleep
Day 5 (8 Nov 2013):
1. 3:00 AM - Wake up, bath, Japa
2. 4:00 AM - Mangal Arti, Japa at Prabhupada's samadhi
3. till 7:30 AM - 32 rounds japa
4. 7:30 AM - Guru Puja
5. 8:00 AM - Lecture by H H BhaktiCharu Swami Maharaj
6. 10:00 AM - Prasadam
7. 11:30 AM to 2:30 PM - Attended the appearance day of H H Narmada Swami Maharaj at his samadhi at Goshala (Speakers : H H Gopal Krsna
Maharaj, H H Bhakti Vikash Maharaj, Senior Prabhupada's Disaples, Ahmadabad temple president, other seniors from
BBT).
8. 5:00 PM to 7:00 PM - Evening lecture (Part I) by H G Visnava Prabhu, about Krsna on Mahabharat Youdha.
9. 8:00 PM - Visited the Prem Mandir (Kripalu Maharaj's temple)
10. 9:30 PM - Prasadam
11. 9:45 PM - Discussion with H G Gopendra Pr about Krsna's existence, relationship with gopies after dwarika departure.
12. 11:00 PM - went for sleep
Day 6 (9 Nov 2013):
1. 3:00 AM - Wake up, bath, Japa
2. 4:00 AM - Mangal Arti, Japa at Prabhupada's samadhi
3. till 7:30 AM - 32 rounds japa
4. 7:30 AM - Guru Puja
5. 8:00 AM - Lecture on Association with devotees
6. 11:15 AM - Discussion with H G Ramakant Pr about you (H H Hanumatpresaka Swami), Technology impact on society.
7. 5:00 PM to 7:00 PM - Evening lecture (Part II) by H G Visnava Prabhu, about Krsna on Mahabharat Youdha.
8. 8:00 PM - Lamp offering & Darshan & Gopi Git
9. 9:10 PM - Prasadam
10. 9:35 PM - Discussion with H G Gopendra Pr about Sadana (How reach next level).
11. 11:00 PM - went for sleep
Day 7 (10 Nov 2013):
1. 3:00 AM - Wake up, bath, Japa
2. 4:00 AM - Mangal Arti, Japa at Prabhupada's samadhi
3. till 7:30 AM - 32 rounds japa
4. 7:30 AM - Guru Puja
5. 8:00 AM - Gopastami Darshan, Gau Puja at Gosala, Lecture by H H Bhakticharu Swami Maharaj, Prasadam
6. 11:30 AM - Attended Initiation Cerimony by H H Bhakti Vikash Swami Maharaj at temple
7. 12:00 PM - Meeting with Pune Devotees, Purchasing beedbagas for devotees from outside of temple shop.
8. 2:00 PM - Discussion with H G Ramakant Pr about Sadana (eye, hearing, mind etc, why sages are always keep close their eye and lots of things).
9. 2:30 PM - Started Gopal-champu (owned by H G Gopendra Prabhu)
10. 5:00 PM - Visited Radha Damodhar Temple, Radha Shyam Sunder Temple, Purchased Gopal-Champu
11. 8:00 PM - Lamp offering & Darshan & Gopi Git
12. 9:10 PM - Prasadam
13. 9:35 PM - Q/A Session with H G Gopendra Pr.
14. 10:30 PM - Prasadam & went for sleep
Day 8 (11 Nov 2013):
1. 3:00 AM - Wake up, bath, Japa
2. 4:00 AM - Mangal Arti, Japa at Prabhupada's samadhi
3. till 7:30 AM - 32 rounds japa
4. 7:30 AM - Guru Puja
5. 8:00 AM - Lecture by H H Bhakticharu Swami Maharaj, Prasadam
6. 10:30 AM - Prepared Tulsi leafe for home as Mahaprasadam
7. 12:00 PM - Meeting with Devotees
8. 12:30 PM - Started for Radha Kunda, spent almost 5 hours, prayers, shoping etc.
9. 7:30 PM - Returned from Radha Kunda
10. 8:00 PM - Lamp offering & Darshan & Gopi Git
11. 9:10 PM - Prasadam
12. 9:35 PM - Q/A Session with H G Gopendra Pr.
13. 10:30 PM - Prasadam & went for sleep
Day 9 (12 Nov 2013):
1. 3:00 AM - Wake up, bath, Japa
2. 4:00 AM - Mangal Arti, Japa at Prabhupada's samadhi
3. till 7:30 AM - 32 rounds japa
4. 7:30 AM - Guru Puja
5. 8:00 AM - Started for Nidhi Van, Seva Kunj, Sri Sri Radha Damodhar Mandir
6. 12:30 AM - Shoping for home - Prasadam, Narsingh Dev Photo, beedbag etc.
7. 2:30 PM - Q/A Session with H G Gopendra Pr & H G Ramakant Pr about 'nature' behaviour/characteristics
8. 3:00 PM - Prasadam
9. 3:30 PM - Started for Mathura Rly Station
10. 5:30 PM - On board train for Raipur
B. Home Town with Parents (14 Nov - 25 Nov 2013)
Reached home town at 4:30 PM on 14 Nov 2013. Normally, i get chance to go home town once in a year and as elder son of family, lots of tasks
waits for me for parents and younger brother. So i do all those and check for other responsibility.
My mother is a devotee and she is very strict to her sadhana. She always wake-up at 4:00 AM. She has a strick schedule for her sadhana - worship,
flowers offering, japa and other home responsibilities. I never seen her to break any rule for her comfort, she never.
C. Remote Village in Chhattisgarh (26 Nov - 3 Dec 2013)
I visited almost 12-13 villages in chhattisgarh in the search for simplicity, true life (which i don't found in the city life).
Why i choosed those village?
Krsna's arrangement. I visited one village first and found a 10" diety of Lord Krsna with two cows (surrounded) in the village.
Krsan was blue in color and it was evening time, when i saw Krsan there, got fully attaracted.
when returned home from that village, thinking to go back again to see Krsna again. On the same night, went on the roof of our home and
somewhere some villagers very far from our home, were singing about Krsan. To here those village songs, i was very happy and excited.
So i inquired with my mother about those people, she said, there are many villages in that side, where people loves Krsan very much, every village
has a Krsna deity and they perform Krsna story in the evening time, every day. So i decided to visit all those to see how they love Krsan or how they
express love for Krsna.
Villagers say them self - "Yadava". But scripturs says, there is no "Yadava" after Krsan's departur. But anyway, i found the villagers very simple
heart, simple living and actually leaving a true life. They wake-up very early in the moring, do there farming duty every day and in the evening time
they play or sing Krsan's lila or Ramayan every day and sleep early.
I came back in Pune but my heart is there, near the blue 10" diety of Lord Krsan surrounded with two cows, playing floots in the village.
One more thing is in my mind, There were many cows in those villages. One day when i was returning from a village in the evening time, i saw huge
no of cows returning from field. Cows were looking lovely, beautiful and a boy was taking care of those cows. Actually the boy was bringing back
those cows in the evening time. To see those, i was remembering Krsan. Krsan used to bring back cows from field in the evening time. Every thing
was looking so truth and simple. I was totally wordless.
your fallen servant,
Girivaradhari-Gopal Das
! ! ! ! ! Such mercy to hear about life in India ! ! ! Do you have any plans for like the next twenty years? Stay B'cari? Take to Sannyasa life?