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The early morning visitors from the ever-fresh blue sky gently swooped past the rather simple and set back, thatched huts of the remote village, which was like a complete paradise of beauty, purity and peace, where there were undulated pastures and meadows of ever-green, varied crops and pristine flora, which swayed to the tune of the gentle breeze and stretched out miles all around the vast expanse of the tranquil town. Situated in the westernmost part of India in West Bengal, its name, Mayapur! After the prolonged lockdown which the entire world was under; millions, including us, thronged to the sacred town to embark on this long-awaited pilgrimage. My friends, Gauranga, Srihari, and I planned to embark on a journey with our parents. Our goal was to share two months of unforgettable experiences that would bring us closer to the Lord and deepen our commitment to devotional service. We saw this trip as an opportunity to strengthen our bond and grow our friendship even more. As soon as we had put our first step into the precincts of the temple, we saw these five majestic statues, seemingly of brass make, all beaming effulgent smiles of mercy and genuine compassion, their name: Panchatatva. Next, on the right was revealed; a huge hall, where another set of glamorous and alluring deities, known as Sri Sri Radha-Madhav-Ashtasakhis. Nearby, I saw another altar that was situated to the right of Radha Madhava, where most of the crowd had gathered. All it seemed from my view was a small chunk of rock but as I went forward, I was taken aback and astonished at what it turned out to be; a full-size deity of Ugra-Narasimha! The dignity and opulence of the deity were so spectacular, two eyes weren’t enough to absorb its majesty. Narasimha Dev’s ochre-red beady eyes, ferocious teeth and nails seemed ready to pounce on and destroy the Hiranyakashipu in our hearts and purify it with his merciful glance. His long and beautifully woven garlands hung around his neck and the decorations streamed across his lustrous form, seemed so charming and enthralling that seconds, minutes, and even hours passed by but I remained transfixed to the ground observing and absorbing all the mercy I could extract by intensely praying and sincerely chanting my rounds in front of the Nrsingha. The following experience was extremely enlightening and transcendentally enlivening. <\/p>\n
After many such galvanizing experiences, today was Nrsingha Chaturdashi, a day the entire world waits for and something every devotee finds very mystical and sublime, and I was sure of something life-changing would manifest today. Therefore, with renewed vigour and determination, we all arose early in the morning to the gentle and relaxing chirping of the birds and the serenity of the atmosphere delighting our minds and reminding us of the special occasion ahead. We all swiftly got ready and shuffled out of our accommodation, and stepped into the spiritually enlivening vortex of eternity, knowledge and bliss, the temple. It was over-flooded with thousands, crowding and jumping over each to have just a slight glimpse of the majestic, tall deities, their faces glistening, dissipating all darkness and giving rise to the illuminating sun. When we, at last, pushed our way forward and looked at Lord Narasimha, he was glancing directly towards me, burning all my past misdeeds and giving me a reassuring look. At that moment, I felt an itching-tingle sensation run down my spine, and I could only infer that people all around me were experiencing the same; my friends and I were conjecturing in for something surprisingly special today, something we would never have thought of, even in the wildest of dreams.<\/p>\n
The Mayapur Chandrodaya Mandir was, fifty years ago, at that period in the middle of tall rice fields and thick green shrubbery which bordered the contemporary temple campus. One downside of that holy reserve was that it held one of the most cunning dacoits who used to, mercilessly attack the temple and harass the devotees without any reason. On one fateful day, the devotees were assaulted ruthlessly, which is when Lord Narasimha Dev decided to enter Mayapur. How he entered Mayapur, is a venturous story in itself. He is still worshipped there with pompous celebrations and thousands flocking to grab one nectar-filled glance, and has come to mark Mayapur famous for one reason; the renowned festival; Narasimha Chaturdashi, for which, we were present personally to have the experience of!<\/p>\n
The temple was packed with people, and as the day went on, preparations for the evening programs began. The crowd grew so large that we couldn’t even enter the temple, and there was a huge group of devotees waiting outside. We decided to go home and rest before the evening festivities, including the highly anticipated Maha-abhishek, which promised to be a once-in-a-lifetime experience. After refreshing ourselves and quenching our thirst, we eagerly prepared for the highlight of the evening. Get ready for an exhilarating experience like no other!<\/p>\n
After getting ready for the rapidly approaching evening’s festivities, we left for the temple, racing to grab a glimpse of the Abhishek. When we reached the entrance, the temple was packed with people but, luckily there was a TV kept outside from which devotees, who could not enter would view the Abhishek. We sat outside the temple and together, with a few other devotees, watched it on the TV, but our eyes searched for the slightest opportunity to enter the temple. As the program was eventually ending, my friends and I became very frantic to barge into the temple for one last close darshana for the day. Shortly thereafter, the deity doors temporarily closed for some reason and the last darshan was announced! Our mothers hearing this, mercifully but reluctantly allowed us to do the unimaginable after we strenuously coaxed them for an opportunity, as it was the only chance of the day! There were chances we might get lost in the sea of people or a stampede was impending.<\/p>\n
My friends and I squeezed through tight spaces, dodging legs and slippery floor on the way to the Nrsingha altar. Little did we realise, the extent of the Abhishek, strewn all over the temple hall, making it extremely slippery; it was ankle deep! We could hear our hearts pounding as we made our way through the dense crowd. Finally, we arrived at the altar door just as the lights went out. The crowd eagerly awaited the opening of the doors, and when they finally opened, we were greeted with the magnificent sight of Narasimha Dev. The energy in the temple was electric as everyone swayed to the kirtan. Despite our attempts to catch a glimpse, our height made it difficult to see over the crowd.<\/p>\n
I was eager to catch a glimpse of the altar, but there was a barricaded area guarded by security officers that only Brahmacharis and Senior Vaishnavas could access. I tried to approach but was waved off. My friends, Gaurang and Srihari, were surprised by my plan. However, when the security guard was distracted, I squeezed through the gap and was pulled in by a Brahmachari. We were promoted to the front, face-to-face with Narasimha Dev. The sight of his shining black body and the fragrant oils elegantly smeared on him left us in wonder. There were thousands of clay pots filled with various preparations between us and Narasimha Dev, which we later received. This experience was breathtaking and left an impression on me. It enlightened me, enlivened my heart, and purified my entire existence. It was an extraordinary phenomenon of unlimited mercy and everlasting bliss that will forever be imprinted in my memory.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The early morning visitors from the ever-fresh blue sky gently swooped past the rather simple and set back, thatched huts of the remote village, which was like a complete paradise of beauty, purity and peace, where there were undulated pastures and meadows of ever-green, varied crops and pristine flora, which swayed to the tune of<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[94],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-110112","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-testing"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/110112","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=110112"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/110112\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":110113,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/110112\/revisions\/110113"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=110112"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=110112"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=110112"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}