Bhaktivedanta Manor visit

Dear Godbrothers and Godsisters,

Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Guru Maharaja. All

glories to Srila Prabhupada.

After having read a letter from Mamatma-mayi mataji, I felt a little bit ashamed that I didn’t write a single word during last three month I spent with guru maharaj in his personal service. Since guru maharaj left yesterday from Oxford to Croatia, I’m using opportunity to inform you about his visit of Bhaktivedanta Manor.

On Janmastami day, our Godbrother Param dhama ananda arrived to Oxford to give a lift to us. Before we left guru maharaj read to us introduction of his Ph.D. thesis on worship in Caitanya vaisnava tradition. Then we enjoyed Param dham’s art's photos and guru maharaj suggested to him that they can together make a cd/book, which would promote main Vrindavan temples described in Bhaktisidhanta Sarasvati’s well-known song.

After that we departed to Manor and got there in an hour of ride. As soon as we stepped out from the car we found ourselves in huge river of people. It is hard to describe how Janmastami at Manor looks like, but it is a probably the biggest Janmastami celebration on the West, with a more than 50.000 people during five days. It resembles huge fait with many different tents and exhibitions. We started our tour with book tent, then Oxford center for Hindu studies tent, and some other exhibitions. We were moving very slowly because guru maharaja had to stop every five or ten steps to talk with devotees we were meeting. Finally, we arrived to temple room ad had darsan of Sri Sri Radha Gokulananda /Sita Rama Laksman Hanuman/ Sri Sri Gaura Nitay. Altar and Deities were decorated in breath taking way and hundreds of guests were waiting in a raw for darsan. Devotee’s bhajan group offered guru maharaj to sing and he sang a few bhajans in front of Deities. After that we continued our tour and came to tent where presentation of new gosala(cow and educational complex) was held. They already have raised pledges on 1.500.000,00 pounds and 250.000 still were missing. Few hors more passed in moving around and talking with different devotees and around sunset we arrived in gigantic main tent. Guru maharaj there enjoyed watching a play about Abhimanyu’s heroic death. Around 11 p.m. guru maharaj led abhisek ceremony on the main stage in front of thousands of visitors and devotees. At midnight he offered an arati to Sri Sri Radha Gokulananda and after that break the fast with delicious maha prasadam.

Tomorrow, on the Vyasa puja day, at least ten Pabhupada’s disciples were present. Guru maharaj started his offering to Srila Prabhupad by saying that for him this day is a day of joy and the day of dread simultaneously. Dread, because he doesn’t feel that he fulfilled Prabhupada’s expectations. But, he found consolation in Ranachor prabhu's statement that Srila Prabhupad didn’t wanted from his disciples to become his copies. Then guru maharaj spoke about Srila Prabhupada’s transcendental failures. Like he wanted to become London layer in his childhood, but his father had a different vision, or how he wanted to expand his business , but somehow it didn’t worked, or how he failed wit League of devotees in Jansi. We should be thankful for these his failures or otherwise he wouldn’t come to the West. Actually Prabhupada’s success was built on his failures. On the end guru maharaja mentioned that Bhaktivedanta Manor Janmastami celebration was one sign of Prabhupada’s success and that he would be proud to see it.

We came back to Oxford in the evening and that evening guru maharaja spoke to us a little bit about his years spent in sankirtan. Sometimes he and other devotees didn’t have where to sleep, sometimes they were suffering due to cold and other austerities. They were chanting on the streets in Harinam for half an hour then went to book distribution for half an hour and so on. And during the winter they had some special wooden shoes and sound of their steps was pretty funny. Beginning of the end of sankirtan for him was when they stopped to do harinam and started to go alone whole day selling book somewhere, it was not as tasty any more as it had been.

After Croatian camp guru maharaja goes for a few days to Prabhupadadesh in Italy, and we are expecting him back to Oxford on night after Radastami.

This much from me for this occasion,

your servant Akincana Balarama dasa