In2-MeC

newly discovered entries of In2-DeepFreeze First Generation Animations

Dnepropetrovsk, the Ukraine
9 September 2004

Photos from Janmastami-Vyasa Puja, Kiev 2004



Morning in Kiev temple: mangal arati, Deity greeting, and Srimad-Bhagavatam class.

His Grace Yadubara Prabhu arrived in Kiev on Janmastami morning. Here we take Deity darsana together.

On Janmastami morning, I offer a small yajna to my Salagram silas.


The ever-smiling Lord on the morning of His transcendental appearance!

An outdoor yajna was scheduled for 8:00 PM Janmastami night. I performed the fire offering. While the fire altar was set up, I spoke with my Godbrother Ladvamsi Prabhu, who joined ISKCON in Boston a few years after me. For the last one year he has lived in the Kiev temple.

While I did the yajna in the yard of the temple building, inside the temple room Yadubara Prabhu led an ecstatic kirtana that went on and on!

Then it was my turn to lead kirtana and give a class of my memories of Janmastami in New Vrndaban 1972 with HDG Srila Prabhupada.

Premavanya's good wife, Moksarupa dd, performed bharatnatyam shortly before the midnight Deity greeting.

Kiev Sri-Sri Gaura-Nitai as They appeared for the Janmastami midnight darsana and arati. Yadubara Prabhu led a beautiful kirtana in which he was accompanied by violin player.

On the afternoon of the next day, Srila Prabhupada's Vyasa Puja was observed.


The puspanjali ceremony. Godbrother Ladvamsi throws the flowers with a heart filled with great emotion for Srila Prabhupada.

Notes from Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura's rendition of Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.2.19, translated by Punya-palaka Prabhu of ISKCON Prague.

The verse as it appears in the BBT edition of Srimad-Bhagavatam, translated by His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada:

tada rajas-tamo-bhavah
kama-lobhadayas ca ye
ceta etair anaviddham
sthitam sattve prasidati

As soon as irrevocable loving service is established in the heart, the effects of nature's modes of passion and ignorance, such as lust, desire and hankering, disappear from the heart. Then the devotee is established in goodness, and he becomes completely happy.

Srila Sarasvati Thakura's word-for-word translation in prose order, rendered into English from the Thakura's Bengali:

tada (after the steady bhakti has been awakened) rajas-tamo-bhavah (situations where the influences of the modes of passion and ignorance become prominent) ye ca kama-lobhadaye (the end of the line) etaih (by them) anaviddham (not bewildered) cetah (the mind) sattve (in suddha-sattva) sthitam (existing) prasidati (becomes peaceful and satisfied)

Srila Sarasvati Thakura's translation (rendered into English from the Thakura's Bengali):

After the steady bhakti has been awakened, one is no more bewildered by all kinds of consequences of the modes of passion and ignorance, such as the six enemies beginning with kama. The mind then becomes absorbed in the mode of goodness and attains peace. Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura comment:
From the modes of passion and ignorance all kinds of distraction and destruction is produced, which means unsteadiness, coveredness, etc. The phrase kama-lobhadi (beginning with lust and greed) should be understood to include also anger, illusion and envy. Anaviddha means not deformed. Therefore it is said that once the mind becomes attached to the form of suddha-sattva, Sri Bhagavan, it attains peace.

Srila Sarasvati Thakura's gloss:

The modes of passion and ignorance in the material world produce lust, anger, greed, illusion, intoxication and envy and destroy all good qualities. When one performs all his activities driven by these modes, with the aim of sense enjoyment, he cannot achieve the unflickering mode of goodness. When the sattva-guna is predominant, or in other words, when the living entity has learned how to discriminate between what is eternal and what is temporary, then all kinds of conduct under the modes of passion and ignorance cannot cover him. At that time the pure spirit soul is not willing to go to hell any more, and his desires and inclinations are fully directed to the service of the Lord.

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