Vrindavan is calling

Yavat
Radharani Ki Jaya
Chinta Haran Ghat
Bhimal Kunda

By Krishna's divine mercy, or perhaps Srimati Radhika's mercy, we are ready to embark on a pilgrimage to the Holy Dham of Vrindavan. A faint calling was there some six months ago, however, no one else was ready and prepared to come with us and we did not want to go alone.

Only recently and after her initiation Varshana Kishori mataji was determined to visit the Holy Dham of Vrindavan. She was so determined that she said "I will go even if you don't come." This was the turning point for our Kartik pilgrimage. Then to our great surprise Samir suddenly said "I will also join you." This was it then.

I don't think we would have gone for this year's kartik parikrama without Varshana Kishori and Samir wanting to come with us. It is so much more inspiring and enlivening to do this annual yajna in the association of devotees, what to speak of with devotees from our very own congregation. It is more than wonderful! Moreover, our dear friends Hariprema and Lilaprema from Coventry will also join us in Vrindavan.

We spent the next few weeks with seemingly countless negotiations to find a suitable flight for our very limited budget, ranging from Jet Airways to Quartar Airlines, to Austrian Airlines and Air India, till we finally settled for Emirates. I don't think I have ever spent so much time choosing an airline, perhaps we have gone through them all, but in the end all four of us were satisfied, namely Samir, Varshana Kishori, Nandini Radha and myself.

The visas are now done and the tickets are booked. Our accommodation in Vrindavan and Mayapur is also booked. In Vrindavan it is right next to Krishna Balarama Mandir, the most wonderful place in the entire universe.

Our journey will take us first to Mayapura, which is Lord Caitanya's birthplace. There we will spend three days. Then we will take the overnight train to Jagannatha Puri, which is in Orissa on the Indian Ocean. Lord Caitanya, along with His devotees and associates, spent much of His time in Puri and one can still see there many places of His divine pastimes.

From Bhuvaneshwara, which is not far from Puri, we will take the train or perhaps a flight to Delhi and then a taxi to Vrindavan, where we will spend the rest of our time on parikrama with Dina Bandhu Prabhu. Dina Bandhu has spent the past 25 years in Vrindavan taking devotees on parikrama. If anyone knows Braj it is him. Dina Bandhu reminds me of Sanatana Goswami, who was much loved by all the inhabitants of Braj, wherever he went. To this very day on guru purnima his memory is celebrated throughout the land of Braj and Vrindavan.



Of course this pilgrimage would not be possible for us if it were not for the causeless mercy of Srila Prabhupada, who kindly introduced us to Krishna consciousness and to Vrindavan.