The Chandrodaya temple

 

 

 

 

 

 

BY T K BASU 

 

 

I HAD a chance visit to Mayapur in West Bengal where the headquarters of the famous ISKCON faith is located. It was December 22 of 2023. I had to face a roadblock for accommodation within the sprawling campus. Firstly, it was overcrowded with year-end rush and secondly, they were not permitting anybody to stay alone in their guesthouses. Later on I gathered that police had imposed restrictions to accommodate any single person because of two unfortunate incidents happening in the recent past. Devotees chose the holy place to commit suicide for unknown reasons. A private hotel ultimately hosted me for the night. Situated at the confluence of two rivers, namely, Jalangi and Bhagirathi (which has been rechristened as ‘Hooghly’ down the stream), Mayapur was an ordinary town in early sixties. ISKCON turned it into an international pilgrimage for Krishna devotees by establishing the famous Chandrodaya temple of Radha Madhaba. Present-day Mayapur is said to be one of the nine islands of the then Nabadwip (nine islands) on which Chaitanya Mahaprabhu took birth five and half centuries back. Most of the original Islands have since gone under the water during change of course of Bhagirati. Krishna Aarti of the temple started exactly at 7.00 p.m. amid beatings of Sree Khol and cymbals in pervading fragrance of incense sticks.

 

Hosts of monks and nuns were dancing with holy chants of “Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare / Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare”. The whole ambience got charged with a devout aura. Many of the monks and nuns were from foreign origin. Even young children in Dhoti with a tika on forehead and a shikha (tuft of hair) on tonsured scalp participated in the dance. Gradually, visitors also joined the chorus raising both their hands skywards. Temple premises wore a festive look adorned in miniature bulbs and aesthetic decoration. I was told that December 23 is celebrated here in a grand fashion. They believe that Lord Krishna delivered his immortal advices to Arjuna on this very day at Kurukshetra battlefield. Guesthouses of the Ashrama were appropriately named as Shankha, Chakra, Gada and Gita Bhawans. I took dinner in the huge dining hall of the Gada Bhawan and left early for the hotel so that I may not miss the special morning Aarti of Gita Day. Aarti was yet to start when I stepped inside the temple next morning. The shrine was jam packed with pious visitors.

 

A senior monk chanted a few shlokas from the Gita and initiated the prayer. Notable thing was, even the youths were in traditional attire of ancient Bharat without any hesitation. The devotees gradually moved to the other hall where Lord Krishna was found with consort Sri Radha and her sahelis. Sounds of Khol, Cymbals and conch shells accompanied by devotional dancing provided me a transcendental experience. I collected a volume of Gita at a throwaway price. While glancing through the holy book with annotated explanations, I could see the manicured lawns and roads bubbling with thousands of footfalls. The new gigantic temple that was coming up on one side was basking in the glorious sunlight. Once completed, it would perhaps be the highest temple in India. Before departure, I took lunch from the temple. The dividing line of waters in mid-river where Jalangi had embraced Bhagirathi was distinctly visible. On the other bank, lay the present day Nabadwip town.