August 13, 2006.
Had gone to Mumbai this weekend with Amol Katkar. A most rewarding trip. We left on Saturday at around 1445 by a shared taxi (Cool Cab, Tata Indica). The ride was very nice as one would expect in the rainy season on the Bombay-Pune Expressway.
We statyed overnight just outside IITB in one of our IITB friend's house. Visited IITB to meet Krishna (Prof Krishna : ) ) but she had gone out somewhere. The next morning we visited the Sri Sri Radha Gopinatha (ISKCON) Temple in Chowpaty. This is why we had come to Mumbai. We reached the temple at around 0700.
Its the most gorgeously beautiful temple you would ever see. Huge temple hall (in which deities are kept), with polished wooden flooring, beautiful large paitings adorning the walls, chandeliers lighting up the hall, and so on. It is like a palace hall where the King presides. Well, the King does preside over it! Their Lordships Sri Sri Radha-Gopinatha! It is impossible to describe the sheer beauty of Lord Gopinatha. The deity is carved out of marble which has a very slight buish hue. One just cannot take one's eyes and mind and heart away from Him. No wonder, because He is Lord Hari who steals the hearts of everyone!
In the temple we attended two lectures. One was given by the temple president of the temple at around 0800 and the next one by His Holiness Radhanath Swami Maharaj at 1330. The 1330 lectures are very popular and are called the Sunday Feast Lectures. Radhanath Maharaj had come to Mumbai from another tour to Kerala and so his disciples from all over had come just to see him and attend his lecture. And what a lecture!!
Meanwhile, after the morning lecture we had very wonderful hot varan-bhat breakfast that was served in the temple. There is also the "Matchless Gifts" shop from which one can buy various things like sweets, books, kurtas, photos and so on. Then we chanted a few rounds and then relaxed a little before again going into the temple hall for a one hour of ecstatic Kirtan with singing and dancing. After that HH Radhanath Maharaj gave the Sunday Feast Lecture. More than 2000 people attended it and lot were listening to it from outside the hall. There also was on-the-fly Hindi translation going on in another hall for those who didnt understand English.
After the Sunday Feast Lecture, we had the Sunday Feast :) And then boarded the Deccan Queen at 1710 to come back to Pune.
A very very rewarding trip. In the midst of that very filthy chowpatty area, there is this gorgeous little replica of Vaikuntha where their Lordships Sri Sri Radha-Gopinath and Sri Sri Gaur Nitai and Lord Giridhar Gopal are bestowing their causeless mercy upon us all fallen souls.
Abhijit.
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