By Visakha Priya dasi
For more than a decade now, the annual VIHE Govardhan Retreat has been going on at the foot of Govardhan Hill in the small town of Jatipur, where Shrila Madhavendra Puri established the temple of Gopal. Led by His Holiness Sacinandan Swami, His Grace Bhurijan Prabhu, Her Grace Jagattarini Devi, and His Grace Madhavanand Prabhu, this transcendental festival of singing, dancing, feasting and especially hearing is Krsna consciousness in action, wherein the six loving exchanges—dadati pratigrhnati guhyamakhyati prcchati bhunkte bhojayate caiva—are visible everywhere and at all times during that blessed week.
The opening program normally starts on the rooftops of the retreat’s headquarters, the Bal-Krishna ashram, which is right by Govardhan Hill. So it really feels like we are sitting in the lap of Giriraj. On this particular December 9, after hearing the teachers introduce the ancient concept of going on a retreat and give a synopsis of their upcoming seminars, I couldn’t wait for the next day to start. But before that, on that first night, there was a powerful kirtan followed by nutty puffed rice and ginger tea strong enough to keep the night chill at bay.
Each day started with early morning japa in the temple hall adorned with large posters of Gauranga Mahaprabhu in different lilas. In front of the large altar, upon which Shri Shri Radha-Govinda, Shri Shri Gaur-Nitai, Shri Giriraj Govardhana and Shrila Prabhupada sat, the devotees affectionately sang the morning prayers and performed guru-puja before sitting down to hear Madhavananda Prabhu’s inspired and timely rendition of “Delivering the Wives of the Yajnic Brahmanas” (from the Krishna book).
After a solid breakfast, we would all gather at 10:30 am in the “Gopinath Garden,” a wild expanse of land adjacent to the Bal-Krishna ashram, in an elegant pandal with a panoramic view of Govardhan Hill. There we would sit until 2 pm, raptly hearing Sacinandan Swami and BhurijanPrabhu’s presentations.
This year, His Holiness decided to dive deep into lila-katha and, fittingly, he chose to speak on the pastimes of worshiping Govardhan Hill, lifting Govardhan Hill, Indra’s subsequent meeting with Krishna and the coronation of Krishna as Govinda. Each session began with a philosophical discourse during which Maharaja had us reflect, meditate on what was heard, and address the Lord in a prayerful mood. This was followed by a dramatic reading with musical accompaniment. In this way, by hearing detailed descriptions of Krishna’s pastimes, mercy, and beauty, and of the Vrajavasis love for Krishna, the lotus of our hearts began to open up.
Bhurijan Prabhu’s presentation, titled “A glimpse from a drop of the ocean of separation from Krishna,” focused on the unparalleled feelings of separation of the Vrajavasis after Krishna left for Mathura. Describing Uddhav’s journey to Vrindavan and the intense emotions displayed by the residents of Vraja, Bhurijan Prabhu revealed the internal mood real sadhus cultivate: a life of intense longing in separation from Krishna.
After a tasty hot lunch, we would disperse and attend to whatever it was we needed to do. Celestial evening kirtans would start at 6pm in the temple hall, followed by Jagattarini Devi’s consummate rendition of Shrila Rupa Goswami’s Dana-keli-kaumudi from the newly translated version of Gopiparanadhana Prabhu’s student Nityananda das. She expertly brought to life the pastime of Krishna as a tax collector as it happened five thousand years ago at Dana-ghati, a few hundred meters from where we sat.
On the last day of the retreat, a spectacular play, staged and produced by Sacinandan Swami’s intelligent disciple Bhagavati dasi, threw open the curtain of maya to reveal the enchanting pastime of Raghunatha dasa Goswami’s Pearl Story (Mukta-carita).
All glories to Srila Prabhupada, the root cause of our good fortune! May he bless us more and more with the association of pure devotees.
“Because the wonderful Lord never came before my eyes, and because I never tasted the nectar of service to His lotus feet, I simply pray to attain the jubilant festival of the association of those great souls now decorating this world whose hearts are fixed at Lord Chaitanya’s lotus feet.” (Shrila Prabodhanand Saraswati, Shri Chaitanya-chandramrit, text 50)
Link for Govardhan Retreat 2012: https://picasaweb.google.com/108723086666292087250/GovardhanRetreat2012