November 2013 Dedicated toHisDivineGrace A.C. BhaktivedantaSwamiPrabhupada,Founder-AcharyaoftheInternationalSocietyforKrishnaConsciousness October 1975 Conversation inNairobi, liberated. The intelligencealsobecomes the mindalsobecomesliberated. means aswebecomeliberated, also covered.Sothespirituallife things, similarly,themindis soul iscoveredbythematerial material mind,iscovered.Asthe everything. Sothismind, body, hismind,intelligence, consciousness. Soulhasgothis The soulisoriginal Srila Prabhupada: 40th concludes with magical finale Anniversary thrilling firework display, hailed as the the night sky became the backdrop to a magic, and afteraperiodofanticipation the eveningatmospherewasfullof Described asa“spiritual Disneyland”, beautiful multi-coloured lighting! the adjacent trees were adorned with which wasilluminated in purple,and in frontofthe iconic Manor building lawn fortheGrandFireworkDisplay, evening thousandsgatheredonthefront on Sunday3rdNovember!Inthe during themagnificent festival Manor’s 40th Anniversary celebrations How apt it was to round off Bhaktivedanta email: [email protected] Prabhupada. Ifyouareinterested tolearn more please ofSrila thedirectives for afutureconcurrencewith elements of direction, the visionsetsoutasteadycourse makers. While building oncurrentstrengthsandredressing intended to assistandguidecurrent and futuredecision- Vision forBhaktivedanta Manor. This Vision Statement is Last Septembertheteamfinalisedandlaunched the Temple’s past,presentandfuture. various communities have worked hard conversing about representing a crosssection of ’s Over thelasttwoandahalfyearsteamofdevotees Vision 2020Launch Chuka UmunnaMP. and the Shadow Business Secretary Mr Ireland Theresa VilliersNorthern MP including theSecretary ofStatefor community leaders, MayorsandMPs, Invited guests included a host of tent. staged their version inside the main hours earlier the Bhaktivedanta Players to performonstage in the field. Two the Pandava Sena cast braved the cold different performances of The Ramayan: Guests wereearliertreatedtotwo best inthearea. ...continued on page 4 Bhaktivedanta Manor Newsletter November 2013

ISKCON Leicester Gurukulis’ 40 Hour Celebrates The 40th anniversary celebrations from liaising with the Temple Council Devotees gathered for a Holy Name have encouraged various festivities to organising dates, prasadam and weekend at the magnificent new ISKCON throughout the temple and have brought logistics, to decorations and flowering property in Leicester’s city centre. together all strands of the community offerings. They even organised each in their endeavours to offer something other and throughout the course of Built in 1875 as a bank and considered the to Sri Sri Gokulananda . Among the weekend encouraged their peers jewel of Victorian architecture, ISKCON these was the Gurukuli youth of the near and far to participate in whatever has gratefully received Listed Building temple community who came together capacity they could. Consent and Planning Permission for to host an extended weekend of kirtan, the design and renovation work for the The weekend itself went ahead and glorification of the Lord - building. It will become a home for Lord beautifully. Together everyone engaged The 40hr Kirtan. Jagannatha and Panca and grow in soulful kirtan that resonated In into a community hub. The youth took charge of everything, people’s hearts. Students gather at Manor for Day On Sunday 6th October, over 140 Seva Day volunteers from 12 Universities descended on the Manor to serve in a variety of areas, including Holland Farm, the gardens, planting hyacinths, weeding, cleaning the lake , New Gokul farm and making charity cards.

Seva Day is a global initiative where an act of kindness through many different projects is offered to society by thousands of volunteers from many different backgrounds, cultures, and professions.

The same day, a team of 15 volunteers from the corporate sector came together to host a Food for Life project at Bhaktivedanta Manor’s kitchen. They touched the hearts of those who live rough by cooking for, spending time with and distributing hot meals to the homeless in an all-day effort.

Bijal Majithia, Project Manager, shared that "The project was very warmly received by the eight homeless shelters managed by the Watford New Hope Trust across Watford and Rickmansworth, from Churches and Day Care Centres to Night Shelters.”

Page 2 Bhaktivedanta Manor Newsletter November 2013 Remembrance Day at Letchmore Heath Communications Manager Devaki dasi joined Rev Robert Flether and Cathy Watts of Aldenham School to represent Bhaktivedanta Manor at Letchmore Heath’s Remembrance Sunday ceremony. After laying a wreath at the War Memorial, she read prayers asking those with faith in God to help those who have lost their faith due to loss and suffering.

Srutidharma das and the Mayor Srutidharma das officially welcomed The Indian Ambassador to Iceland made of Hertsmere Cllr Paul Morris were Dr Vasant Lad and over 50 students a special visit to the Manor, along with pleased to meet each other during the and teachers of from across Mr K Singh, the Manager of Air Civic Service at the Bushey United Europe at the outset of their 5 day course for UK and Europe, and others. Synagogue. at the Manor.

Yoga for the Heart ' for the Heart' was a successful day- They enjoyed activities such as milking long retreat, organised by the the cows, , an interactive Wisdom team on Saturday 17th August. seminar by Kripamoya das and 35 attended, including sanga group Janakinath das, guided meditation by members in Southampton, Northampton Rangadevi dasi and a delicious meal. and Norwich, and visitors to Krishna Similar events are planned for the future. Wisdom’s Facebook page.

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...continued on from page1 Once again, during this unforgettable 40th Anniversary year, the Manor made it on national news: this time with a photo on BBC News week in Pictures.

“This year there are about 15,000 guests and we had a huge firework display,” explained Temple President Srutidharma das on BBC Three Counties Radio. “The Diwali festival is all about lighting two lamps. We light a lamp to welcome Lord back home to Ayodhya after His Avanti Schools reach Number 10 exile, and other, internal lamp: the lamp 14 children from the Krishna Avanti from the podium before the Prime of knowledge, inspiration and direction. Primary school and it's sister secondary Minister’s official address, finishing These things will illuminate our lives for school, Avanti House peformed with the Mahamantra. the upcoming year.” traditional glorifying Lord Prime Minister David Cameron spoke Rama at this year’s “Diwali at Number very positively about the significance 10” event at the Prime Minister’s abode of Diwali and in particular about Lord in Downing Street. Ramachandra’s commitment to the ISKCON was represented by Praghosa principles of honesty, equality, fairness das, Gauri das, Vinay Tanna and and service. Srutidharma das. The latter chanted

Barry Gardiner MP, Srutidharma das, CB Patel of the Asian Voice and Manoj Ladwa gave Mr Chuka Umunna MP a tour of New Gokul during his festival visit. Page 4 Bhaktivedanta Manor Newsletter November 2013

Praghosa das, the ISKCON Governing Srutidharma das and Gauri das joined Srutidharma das delivered a resounding Body Commissioner for the UK and the Leader of the Labour Party Ed message on the main stage of Diwali in Ireland, was amongst those who met Miliband MP on stage to give the Diwali Trafalgar Square. Bhakta Kunal Pattany Prime Minister David Cameron at a proceedings an auspicious start with worked hard behind the scenes and huge Annakut function in north-west prayers, the mantra and Soho Street Temple distributed a 1000 . the lighting of a ceremonial lamp. boxes of sweets and ran a book stand.

Kartik – Offering Candles Annakut, Go- and Govardhana Puja The (Vedic histories) extol the The festival atmosphere continued the day after Diwali, on Monday 4th November. holy month of Kartik as the topmost in The celebrations included a magnificent array of vegetarian preparations offered to the annual Calendar/ Lord Krishna’s Lord Krishna during the Annakut festival. Govardhana Puja was also performed on mercy is very easily accessible during the day, and the cows were honoured in a special ceremony, with swarms of devotees this month and to demonstrate their decorating the cows with traditional hand paints. Through these festivities, devotees sincerity devotees accept different sought to re-create in a small way the events which took place over 5000 years ago austerities such as cutting down on in , the place of Krishna’s childhood pastimes. non-essential activities. Twice a day, every day, the eight beautiful verses of the Damodarastakam prayers are sung, while everyone is welcome to offer a candle in front of the Temple shrine.

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Social Workers’ Away Day A large delegation of social workers associated with Hertfordshire County Council spent their annual Away Day at Senior devotees Bhaktivedanta Manor. Remember Giriraj Swami was the special guest Men’s Ashram Retreat on Srila Prabhupada’s Disappearance 20 brahmacaris and 10 members of the Day, on Wednesday 6th November. He congregation, joined by Atmanivedana recalled the last few emotional weeks Swami and Candramauli Swami, before the passing of Srila Prabhupada in embarked on the Manor’s annual ashram Juhu, Mumbai and finally in Vrindavan. retreat. This time it was in the Ljubljana The same week Malati dasi, one of Temple (Nava Yoga Pitha) in Slovenia. ISKCON UK's original pioneers, also There were morning programs, a series of shared her memories and realisations. seminars, dramas, Holy Name evenings, walks in the mountains and harinams in places such as Ljubljana city centre. Lotus Trust Launches Philippines Typhoon Appeal With up to a staggering 10,000 people The Lotus Trust – the welfare arm of feared dead following the massive ISKCON Bhaktivedanta Manor – is typhoon that struck eastern andcentral working with the UK Hindu community Philippines on Friday 8th November, to assist with the huge relief effort that several hundred corpses are scattered is required. We have partnered with across the town of Tacloban, flattened ISKCON Food for Life volunteers in from the severe battering of winds up the Philippines who are travelling to the Yoga Show London to 170 miles an hour. Recorded as one area to assist in the food relief efforts. At the huge Yoga Show London in of the most powerful storms ever to Your donations are crucial to Kensington’s Olympia , Adi Guru das hit land, the typhoon named ‘Haiyan’ our relief efforts. and his team sold beads, Srila caused devastation across a central belt Prabhupada’s books and t-shirts. of islands on the eastern provinces of • 100 nutritious meals can be served for as little as £30 Simultaneously they ran chanting Leyte and Samar. workshops and delivered discourses on • (this means rice, vegetable soup and More than 430,000 people have been the . Over the three day chowmein for less than 30 pence displaced and have sought shelter in period hundreds of guests sat through 6 per plate) temporary evacuation centres, many of on the stage. • Please give generously and help our which were also damaged by the typhoon. Adi Guru das is looking for sponsors to volunteers save lives. Disaster workers have estimated that represent ISKCON at next year’s Yoga some towns have suffered 80-90% DONAT ONLINE AT Show. If you can help please contact: damage. The UN has highlighted that www.thelotustrust.org [email protected] some cities such as Baco was 80% under water. With local infrastructure completely destroyed, survivors have to now contend with finding fresh water and food. At present, it is difficult to bring help to the victims in the various areas due to absence of coordination with local officials who have become victims themselves.

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pressing 13 crates of the Manor’s apples. Apple Pressing Day After pasteurising, the final result was a Uddhava das, Syamasundara das and tasty 120 litres of pure freshly pressed the Wwoofers worked hard to pick all organic apple juice which was then the apples from the Manor’s orchard, poured into 750 ml bottles. Dusshera which involved using ladders and some New Gokul’s next project is to do justice The Seva Day volunteers helped the tree climbing and branch shaking. Then, to the plums and pears which grow along Festival Team make the huge effigy of for 10 hours Lalita Sakhi dasi, Uddhava the drive adjacent to the poly tunnels. Ravana, just in time for it to be hoisted das, Wwoofers and others had great into position and set on fire during this fun washing, chopping, crushing and year’s Dusshera festival. Fulfilling Prabhupada's wish A most noteworthy event took place at There were different reasons for this, the Manor quite recently: the signing one reason being that local devotees of an affiliation and Licence agreement would become familiar and competent between the original ISKCON charity in all the necessary requirements of of 1969 and the new ISKCON running an incorporated charity. Another Bhaktivedanta Manor charity. This reason was to not have all our centres brings us one step closer, after many legally connected in case one of them years of preparation, for ISKCON ran into difficulty, and other centres The German Beatles Fan Club, based Bhaktivedanta Manor to become an might then be negatively affected. in Hamburg, made a special visit to the independent separate charity. In due course of time all the other 10 Garden. This is significant in that Srila current ISKCON UK centres will do Prabhupada instructed that all legal the same. entities outside of India should be Unity of Faiths registered separately wherever possible. As one of the main faith leaders in the London area, Srutidharma das was invited to address a huge crowd during the launch of the Unity of Faiths festival in Southall Park. He and other leaders spoke of the commonality of people of all faiths and the importance of maintaining mutual respect, peace and on-going dialogue.

Page 7 Bhaktivedanta Manor Newsletter November 2013 Harrow United Deaf Club Radha Mohan das and Prema Pradip das were awarded a certificate of thanks by ‎Deputy Lieutenant of London Mr John Purnell. It was for their dramatic presentation about Diwali and the story of the Ramayan during Harrow United Deaf Club's Eid & Diwali Celebration. Prema Pradip das is a member of the Deaf Association (RKDA) and is proficient in sign language. Dynamic educational opportunities The College of Vedic Studies is offering Prabhupada’s books), -vaibhava a wide range of opportunities to learn (study of the Srimad Bhagavatam) and more: Every Sunday 155 students are the Spiritual Master and Disciple. The attending a variety of courses including courses are receiving rave reviews. Explore (introductory course), Gita For more information, visit www. Life (summary of the Bhagavad-gita), krishnatemple.com and click ‘College’. Bhakti-sastri (study of a variety of Srila

Jude – Champion of Cows! Jude Ackland, just 8 years old, set his mind on a challenge never even dreamed of by children his age. On a sleepy Sunday morning in September, Jude from North London rode from central Oxford and through the towns and villages of the Chilterns. With an occasional stop on the way, Jude rode through the north London suburbs and eventually crossed Lambeth Bridge to arrive at the London Eye, having cycled an awe-inspiring 62 miles! He was sponsored to raise funds for The Lotus Trust’s Slaughter-Free Milk Campaign, which aims to raise the quality of life of cows and aid in the production of healthier milk. Bhakti Choir - A performance by the Bhakti Choir, including songs glorifying the lotus feet of Srimati Radharani, was the highlight of this year’s Radhastami festival

November Bhaktivedanta Manor Sun 24th Sri Krishna Rasayatra, Tulasi Salagram Vivah Dharam Marg · Hilfield Lane Aldenham · Herts Fri 29th Upanna Ekadasi (for sat-nav only, please use postcode WD25 8DT) December Thur 12th Gita Jayani (App of Srimad Bhagavad gita) 01923 851000 Fri 13th Moksada Ekadasi www.krishnatemple.com Sat 21st Disapp of Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura Please send your news, photos and comments to: Sun 22nd Bhagavavad-gita recitation at Manor Radha Mohan das Sat 28th Saphala Ekadasi [email protected]

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