Lakshmi Puja/Damodara Mas

Yesterday we celebrated Lakshmi puja at our home. I lightly decorated the porch and sidewalk after sweeping and washing it. I purified my home with cow dung smoke and incense, and then set an altar for Lakshmi devi. I bathed my Lakshmi Narasimhadev with milk, yogurt, ghee, honey, and sugar water. Chandaneswar prabhu performed arati, while  Krishna Chandra and his cousins bathed the deities and offered ghee lamps to Lord Damodar. I was really satisfied with our simple but devoted puja. 

Later, I went to offer a ghee lamp at Radha Kalachandji's temple, and took some photos with my camera phone. Radha Kalachandji were bedecked in jewels and donning a luminescent white outfit. Shining brighter than a thousand moons, Kalachandji and Sri Radhe glanced gracefully and captivated the hearts of Their admirers. I can not describe how fortunte I am to have Their mercy.

It is impossible to describe the saundarya quality of Radha Kalachandji fully.
I can only allude to Their exquisite beauty in unworthy fragments. 

Christmas Prayers

Today is Christmas day- the day celebrated as Jesus Christ's appearance day- so there was a festival program at the temple for Sri Sri Radha Kalachandji; though I didn't attend personally, I was in the pujari room and witnessed the abundance of gifts received by the Deities and Srila Prabhupada first hand on this momentous occasion. There were pressure cookers, food processors, juicers, towels, and all kinds of kitchen and worship paraphernalia piled on top of each other. It was nice to see the spirit of charity alive in Krishna Consciousness. Sometimes we hear people say, "Give to a good cause. This is for a good cause. etc." but only when we engage our mind, body and hearts in the service of the Supreme Lord, Sri Krishna, do we really support a good cause--our spiritual cause. Without God and a God-conscious society, every good cause will go on in vain without knowledge of the True Self and the spiritual reality, Sri Goloka Dham, every endeavor is simply a waste of valuable time and energy. Rather than pray for material enjoyment, I'd like to pray for my Self in hopes that I will one day make some spiritual advancement. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu indiscriminately gives away prema-bhakti, pure Love of Godhead to anyone... regardless of age, race, gender, background or creed simply out of compassion for the fallen souls of this Age. So I pray for the Mercy of the Two Transcendental Brothers, Bringers of the Holy Name,
"Please, My Lord Gauranga! Oh Son of Sachi, please engage me in chanting the Holy Name of Lord Krishna! Allow me to taste the nectar of Sri Hari Nam and uninhibitedly delve into that ocean of transcendental sweet ambrosia. Oh Thakur! When will I cry joyfully in ecstasy and develop symptoms of prema within my body after simply uttering the words, 'Nitai! Gaura! Gauranga!'? "
Touching the feet of the Vaishnavs, I pray that you will offer me your blessings and make my prayers come true, it is my only solace in Life.
Also, if you would like to similarly pray for pure love of Godhead, there is a beautiful bhajan/poem by Srila Narottam das Thakur called 'Gauranga bolite habe'.  

Mild Euphoria

So, I'm feeling better, I wanted to let everyone know that I haven't died or dropped off the face of the Earth. I've been working on the scarf and making a gauge swatch for a possible new project. (I plan to photograph other projects, Deities, outfits, etc. to accompany any updates soon.) Today I was energetic and healthy enough to assist Chandaneswar prabhu in his service to Sri Sri Radha Kalachandji, afternoon waking and feeding the Lords. Krishna Chandra and I transferred the prasadam, washed the Lord's offering plates and cleaned up while Chandaneswar prabhu did the arati. After we came home, Krishna Chandra and I had a good old-fashioned pillow fight and played hide-and-seek. When I was sufficiently exhausted, I reasoned with the boy but he cried and we watched a film on the laptop while I caught my breath. Krishna Chandra is reading my typing as I write.... he's eavesdropping. He's a great reader, he can read everything I write. EVERYTHING. I'm starting to think maybe it wasn't such a good idea to teach my baby to read. It's much harder to trick a four-year-old when they know how to read labels, instructions, manuals, signs, etc. I'm starting to realise why it's so important for The Man to keep our schools in shoddy condition; it helps to keep us down, ignorant and illiterate. Funny how Krishna Chandra has helped me come to this realisation. Something to think about, folks... just sayin'. Haribol, readers. Madri out.

Sri Sri Radha Madan Mohan

A few days ago, I had a very special dream about Sri Sri Radha Krishna deities. I know I've said it before but I'll tell you guys again, I don't usually have dreams about Radha Krishna so it is very rare for me. This particular dream was radically different from my other dreams in so many ways that I'm struck with wonder and awe as to how everything happened. For example, this dream was very quick, without a lot of vivid details and not as "lucid" as my other dreams regarding Sri Sri Radha Krishna; usually, I dream of worshiping Sri Sri Radha Krishna in my home with opulent paraphernalia and ornaments, They are always large white marble deities, approximately 24"-30" in height and They have no Names. In this dream, I was gifted a small set of Sri Sri Radha Krishna deities by a devotee; Their Lordships were approximately eight inches in height, possibly astadhatu--They were extremely effulgent, so much so that I struggled to take darshan at first glance. The devotee, a mid-twenty to thirties man, is holding the Deities in his arms and approaches me, he doesn't speak to me or even look at me and I never even bother to look at him but I can "hear" him say that Their Lordships have gone largely unattended and that he is hoping to find someone who will serve Them faithfully. I can't explain to you how I received this communication because the sound did not emanate from his external body, it was as if we communicated solely on a telepathic level... at the time this was only a minor, insignificant detail in the matter.
Meanwhile, I'm completely taken in by the beauty of Their Lordships, They have an exceptionally charming demeanor and charismatic air about Them. Their faces are full, round and chubby and They reminded me of Sri Sri Radha Damodar due to their very youthful appearance.


The awesome beauty of Their Lordships even rivaled that of Sri Sri Radha Damodar; due to Their sweet, smiling faces and enchanting eyes, one would fall immediately in love with Them and forget one's very life....
Sri Krishna had very chubby, dimpled, rosy cheeks and large locks of gorgeous, raven-black curls that swept gently across His lotus face while Sri Radha's bright reddish, lotus-petaled eyes, as effulgent as the full moon, accentuated the astounding beauty of Her round, moon-shaped face, even Her beautiful blushing cheeks resembled small, perfectly round, red apples. In the dream, I heard no external sound, as if the dream were on mute and I could only hear a voice that permeated the ether, the mind and subtle elements, it revealed the Names, "Sri Sri Radha Madan Mohan" and with that I accepted Their Most Delightful Lordships deep into the core of my heart.