In a country torn apart by war and suffering a plunging economy, Ukranian devotees are braving sub zero winter temperatures to distribute Srila Prabhupada’s books this December. And they’re being rewarded by a receptive public.
“They’re tired of hearing scary news about the war. The whole society is starving for something positive. So when they see harinama or are inpired by book distributors, they feel very indebted. We just got a long letter of appreciation from one member of the public who was so moved to see our winter Harinama on the street.”
With the war rendering people “politically and economically depressed and hopeless,” according to Acyuta Priya, they have become more receptive to spiritual values.
A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami describes the process of chanting the Maha Mantra as follows: Krishna consciousness is not an artificial imposition on the mind; this consciousness is the original energy of the living entity.… As such anyone can take part in the chanting without any previous qualification.
A documentary on the Glories of Govardhan Hill by Bhakti Caitanya Swami
The Vedic scriptures proclaim that the glories of Lord Krishna are unlimited and eternal and no one is able to reach the end of them. In the same way, who can fully describe the splendid glories of Sri Giriraja-Govardhana, the best servant of the Lord and at the same time non-different from the Lord Himself? To protect his dear vrajavasis from Indras wrath, Sri Krishna held the Hill on the small finger of His divine hand for seven days. The area of Govardhan is full of wonderful forests, lakes, caves, waterfalls, jeweled paths, platforms and pavilions. Lords most intimate pastimes places — Sri Radha-kunda and Sri Syama-kunda are located at the foot of the Hill. The Vaishnava acharyas and saints left us a great treasure of scriptures, describing the wonderful pastimes, which are going on eternally in the shade of Giriraja. Here are but a few drops of this nectar.
The holy place known as Mathura is spiritually superior to Vaikuntha, the transcendental world, because the Lord appeared there. Superior to Mathura-Puri is the transcendental forest of Vrndavana because of Krsnas rasa-lila pastimes. And superior to the forest of Vrndavana is Govardhana Hill, for it was raised by the divine hand of Sri Krsna and was the site of His various loving pastimes. And, above all, the superexcellent Sri Radha-kunda stands supreme, for it is overflooded with the ambrosial nectarean prema of the Lord of Gokula, Sri Krsna. Where, then, is that intelligent Person who is unwilling to serve this divine Radha-kunda, which is situated at the foot of Govardhana Hill?
(Sri Upadesamrita, verse 9)
«Of all the devotees this Govardhana Hill is the best! Or my friends this Hill supplies Krishna and Balarama, along with their calves, cows and cowherd friends, with all the necessities: water for drinking, very soft grass, caves, fruits, flowers and vegetables. In this way the Hill offers respects to the Lord. Being touched by the lotus feet of Krishna and Balarama, the hill appears very jubilant».
(SB 10.21.18).
Application for permit does not mean confirmation of travel on that day, you still need to visit the forest office day before or few days before the journey and get the day of travel confirmation done.
You can do this either at Uttarkashi or Gangotri.
Charge for permit: You don’t have to pay anything online — when you reach forest office entry gate at Gangotri, you have to pay charge of Rs 150 per person.
Charge for Pony service: Government approved rate is Rs 1800 per person from Gangotri Forest entry gate to Bhojbasa and back next day.
Though Rs 1800 rate is fixed by government but on an average this costs Rs 2500 because they will charge extra for luggage plus if you are little over over normal weight they will charge extra. Consider this about Rs 2500 per person.
Guide charge: We paid Rs 2500 to our guide, Ideally you should fix your guide day before the journey, if you want only porter you may get it at Rs 2000 for the complete journey.
In our case Guide demanded Rs 2500 for his service then Rs 1000 extra for his boarding and lodging — we paid Rs 3500 to him for this 2 day journey.
In this route most guides work as Guide cum porter but still you should clarify this with the guide.
Food availability: You can carry your own food or if you want to locally buy, you will get Maggie with tea at Chirbasa.
Food at Garhwal Mandal vikas Nigam Guest house Bhojbasa- They serve good and tasty food, though options are limited, only veg food available.
Dal, Bharta or Bhindi average one person serving costs Rs 170 to Rs 190.
Tea in morning — you can get it at 6 am in morning at Bhojbasa.
Places to stay between Gangotri to Gaumukh: Only place where you can stay is Bhojbasa, there are 2 options there GMVN, you need to do online booking. There is no place to stay at Gaumukh.
Per person stay cost Rs 350 excluding food.
Other option is there is a ashram near GMVN, you can stay there as well at cost of Rs 350 per person. This cost at Ashram includes food cost, they serve langar there.
Electricity at Bhojbasa — There is no electricity over there, GMVN guest house has a generator which they run every day evening for one and a half hour.
Mobile network: You will get mobile network only for 2 to 3 km during the start of the journey, then no network, even BSNL network was not there.
If there is some emergency, GMVN people liasons with the Army there and communicates wirelessly with Gangotri.
Things to carry: Enough woolens, raincoat, oxygen cylinder, you can get oxygen cylinder from gangotri medical shop by paying Rs 600 and if it is not used they will deduct Rs 100 or 200 and return the balance money.
Its not compulsory to carry oxygen cylinder but just on a safe side.
Should you have any other query, please read through frequently asked questions below.
FAQ — Can i travel from Gangotri to Gaumukh and then come back on the same day to Gangotri.
Answer — Yes you can do that, as i did the same 6 years back when i went there with my wife but you need high physical fitness and good stamina. Though it is not advisable, as by the time you reach back Gangotri it will be dark.
Can i start trek early morning at 4 am?
Answer -No, Forest department allows entry from the gate at 6 am, to reach Forest entry gate you should start from you hotel or guest house at Gangotri at 5.30 am or 5.15 am…
Can i travel to Gaumukh in winters?
Answer — No — You can go there during May to Oct period only, during winters Gangotri National park is closed.
Benefit of taking guide?
Answer — He can guide you about danger zone, and give you good company. They are not professional guides, they were porters at some point of time and now have graduated themselves to guide.
Best time to travel to Gaumukh?
Answer — Mid august to end september. May and October will be cold. Though you can travel any time between May to Oct but avoid Monsoon time between June to July.
Is travel on Pony safe?
Answer — To my mind it is not advisable, because if you slip from Pony, it may badly hurt you or there may be a casualty too because it is steep below and passage is also small…
Though the number of travelers per day is limited so there is no crowd there but i will still suggest try walking down and you will love the journey.
In 1965, a 69 year-old spiritual teacher from India arrives in the West and settles among the hippies of New York’s Lower East Side. From a tiny storefront, A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami starts a revolution of consciousness influencing tens of thousands in the US and worldwide. But what happens to his spiritual movement, the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), after their charismatic leader’s passing? Will it survive? Will it change? Can an ancient Eastern religious tradition be relevant in the modern 21st century?
A documentary by Karuna Productions. (www.karunaproductions.com)
Talavan is one of the12 major forests of Vrindavan. Nestled in the paddy fields of Talavan is a beautiful temple dedicated to Lord Balarama, who killed the ass-demon Denakasura there. We enjoyed a wonderful day at Talavan having long kirtans and recounting the numerous pastimes that took place in that transcendental abode.
By the mercy of the Lord our second Kartika parikrama took us to the city of Mathura, where Lord Krsna appeared 5,000 years ago. In a beautiful and spacious temple we discussed the glories of Mathura as revealed in the Brhat Bhagvatamrita, by Srila Sanatana Goswami. After kirtan we wandered the ancient quarters of the city discovering many old temples. Devotees were particularly impressed with two large Deities of Lord Varaha, who have been worshipped since the dawn of creation.
A beautiful prayer for the blessing of all of humanity taken from the Srimad Bhagavatam.
svasty astu visvasya khalah prasidatam
dhyayantu bhutani sivam mitho dhiya
manas ca bhadram bhajatad adhokshaje
avesyatam no matir apy ahaituki
«May the entire universe be blessed with peace and good hope. May everyone driven by envy and enmity become pacified and reconciled. May all living beings develop abiding concern for the welfare of others. May our own hearts and minds be filled with purity and serenity. May all these blessings flow naturally from this supreme benediction: May our attention become spontaneously absorbed in the rapture of pure love unto the transcendent Lord.»
— English rendition by Ravindra Svarupa Dasa, of Srimad Bhagavatam 5.18.9