Festival Celebrations
Krishna Janmashtami! - Aug 19, 2022
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Jlulan Leela - Swinging of Our Beloved Radha Krishna! August 2022
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Ram Navami
On April 10th, 2022 all of the devotees at Radha Govind Dham DC joyfully celebrated the appearance of Lord Shri Ram. The celebrations started with sweet, melodious kirtans about Shri Ram Bal Leelas. The kirtans also depicted how Lord Ram and Krishna are one and the same. It is the same Ram who descended upon this Earth in the Treta Yug who went on to take the form of Shyam in the Dwapar Yug.
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This was followed by the sacred Abhishek of Sita Ram by devotees of all ages, filled with love and reverence. The event concluded with Aarti and the offering of Bhog, lovingly prepared by the devotees, to Hari and Guru.
Jai Shri Ram! |
Happy Holi !
On March 27, 2022, we celebrated a most joyous Holi playing Phoolon Ki Holi with Rose and Jasmine Petals! We danced to the beats of desi Dhol, sang joyful Holi Kirtans, watched the kids play dressed as Radha and Krishna, and ate delicious Holi Gujiya snacks.
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Holi or the festival of colors is celebrated in India with a lot of fervor when everyone comes together to celebrate with the feeling of love and harmony. Such was the sentiment at this year’s Holi celebration at Radha Govind Dham - the atmosphere was filled with fun and frolic. Holi also marks the arrival of Spring and a fragrant shower of fresh roses and jasmine flowers mixed in with a vibrant rainbow of colors - Gulal created clouds of red, pink and yellow hues in the air. Adding to the joyful celebrations were the melodious Kirtans and the lovely devotional sentiments of many people present.
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A video recording of Shri Kripaluji Maharaj’s message was also shown to explain the spiritual significance of Holi. The discourse included the legendary story of Bhakt Prahlad whose life is an outstanding example of the power of devotion, which can effortlessly nullify the mightiest of demonic powers of Hrinyakashyapu and his sister Holika.
As the festivities continued, little children came in dressed up as Radha, Krishna and in other traditional attires. Everyone enjoyed and enthusiastically participated in the Phoolon Ki Holi (Holi celebrations with flowers). Many young children had fun throwing the scented flowers at each other; some kids would sift through the flowers as if finding a treasure. Party poppers had the kids in delirious excitement as they filled the air with colorful paper strings. The chanting by the musicians added a special charm to the evening. The melodies of the kirtans and the sounds of the Dhol had every devotee dancing with abandon. The special unique quality of the dancing was owing to the fact that devotees were not just dancing moving their feet or hands but they were dancing unabashedly with the divine, devotional love of Shri Radha Krishna filled in their hearts. A huge thank you to the volunteers who worked tirelessly and made all the arrangements for this wonderful event, with the blessings of Hari-Guru. The home-made Gujiyas, Thandai, the Bhog prasad were prepared with love and generosity. We hope to rejoice more and more each year as we keep the celebrations alive, while our hearts are beating to the rhythmic love of our dearest Shri Radha Krishna. Jai Shri Radhey!
As the festivities continued, little children came in dressed up as Radha, Krishna and in other traditional attires. Everyone enjoyed and enthusiastically participated in the Phoolon Ki Holi (Holi celebrations with flowers). Many young children had fun throwing the scented flowers at each other; some kids would sift through the flowers as if finding a treasure. Party poppers had the kids in delirious excitement as they filled the air with colorful paper strings. The chanting by the musicians added a special charm to the evening. The melodies of the kirtans and the sounds of the Dhol had every devotee dancing with abandon. The special unique quality of the dancing was owing to the fact that devotees were not just dancing moving their feet or hands but they were dancing unabashedly with the divine, devotional love of Shri Radha Krishna filled in their hearts. A huge thank you to the volunteers who worked tirelessly and made all the arrangements for this wonderful event, with the blessings of Hari-Guru. The home-made Gujiyas, Thandai, the Bhog prasad were prepared with love and generosity. We hope to rejoice more and more each year as we keep the celebrations alive, while our hearts are beating to the rhythmic love of our dearest Shri Radha Krishna. Jai Shri Radhey!
Maha Shivrati
On March 6, 2022, we celebrated a joyous Maha Shivratri to pay our obeisance to Lord Shiva! A big thanks to all of the people who joined us! It was a wonderful celebration starting with devotional Kirtans, Abhishek for Lord Shiva, lecture explaining the significance of Maha Shivratri, Aarti and Bhog Prasad.
Har Har Mahadev!
Har Har Mahadev!
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Basant Panchami
On February 6th, 2022 Basant Panchami was celebrated with much fervor at Radha Govind Dham.
This festival marks the onset of Spring in India and is celebrated throughout the country.
This festival marks the onset of Spring in India and is celebrated throughout the country.
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One could experience the rejuvenating spirit of Spring during the celebrations at Radha Govind Dham. The kirtans sung by the chanters were so energizing, absorbing and easily created beautiful Roop Dhyan (meditation) for everyone. One could easily visualize the yellow color fields of mustard and marigold flowers. Shri Kripaluji Maharaji's speech video was very inspiring and motivated everyone towards Bhakti Sadhana. His divine grace was felt by everyone. Finally, the dinner prasad was finger licking good. With pooris so soft to flavorful tangy cucumber pickle all flavor profiles were represented many in the color of Basant, yellow! The celebrations were beautiful and thoroughly enjoyed by all. The color yellow fills all our hearts and brings renewed hope for a devotional present and devotional future in remembrance of Hari and Guru.
Jai Shri Radhey 🙏🙏 |