Another Fantastic 24 hour Kirtan Rocks New Vrindaban!
Another fantastic 24 hour kirtan rocks New Vrindaban!
Lilasuka dasi
Many devotees at New Vrindaban live for the 24 hour kirtan. I think there are devotees all over the world who live for this special phenomenon. There’s really nothing that can be compared to chanting Hare Krsna for 24 hours straight, or at least for as many hours as one can stay awake.
New Vrindaban recently hosted their 6th 24 hour kirtan on June 16 – 17. However, on Fri. June 15, even before the 24 hour kirtan began, there was a special memorial service held for the sacred memory of the three devotees who recently departed , namely Nitai das, Bhakta Tim, and Yadupati das. There were beautiful slide shows, accompanied by music, depicting each of the departed Vaisnavas. Tim’s parents were in attendance, as were Nitai’s. Carmen, Nitai’s mother, read an incredible poem of farewell to Nitai that she had written. Nitai (Eli Drury), who had been one of the original founders of the 24 hour kirtan, had lived in New Vrindaban for some time and so the whole program was very moving and emotional.
The evening after the memorial service, we had a big kirtan at Prabhupada’s Palace, followed by an ever-popular Swan Boat festival, where the devotees serenaded their Lordships as They glided around the lake on Their Swan boat.
Saturday morning at 11:00, the 24 hour kirtan began with the sweet, slow, melodious tune of Madhava Prabhu. One young lady said that just hearing the first chords of Madhava’s harmonium, she knew this was going to be special. As she gazed around at the faces of the devotees, she felt totally inspired to get into the mood of what she felt other devotees were experiencing.
Another guest said that for the time she was in the kirtan, it took her right out of the material world. She exclaimed, “At times, I was transported to Vrindavan!”
Another visitor declared, “The prasadam was great. I always like coming here for the 24 hour kirtan, where the service mood is very strong.”
About 700 people were in attendance.
The next 24 hour kirtan will be Sat Oct 13 to Sun Oct 14 2012, when I’m sure that we’ll all rock the dhama once again.
