On the weekend of May 21st and 22nd we attended a grand celebration on the most auspicious occasion of the 40th Anniversary of Krishna Consciousness in Sydney, Australia. There were many special guests who had been there around the time our beloved spiritual master, Srila Prabhupada personally spread Krishna consciousness in Australia. Over 100 initiated disciples of Srila Prabhupada attended and everyone was entertained with unforgettable stories of the early pioneering days.
The festival spanned over 2 days – the Saturday 21 May program included a chanting parade (Harinama) of over 200 enthusiastic devotees, led by the famous Sri Prahlad, from downtown to the Sydney Opera House. There was an evening festival in temple with special bhajans (devotional songs) and presentations, recollections, and a slideshow presented by Kurma with many disciples speaking from their personal recollections.
A special 40th Anniversary Radha Gopinath souvenir magazine was printed for the event with many never seen before photos, and was distributed freely to all present.
On Sunday 22 May the program featured a Sydney Harbour Picnic Cruise with continuous chanting led by Sri-Prahlada, Gitanjali and with songs by Yasomati-nandana Prabhu. There were also wonderfully inspiring speeches by many of Srila Prabhupada’s disciples, culminating in a sumptuous vegetarian feast. In the evening a special 40th Anniversary Sunday Feast featured an inspiring slideshow and video presentation by Caru dasa. This was followed by a beautiful Deity bathing ceremony (Maha-abhisekha), and of course, some more blissful chanting and dancing.
Many, many thanks to everyone involved in organising such a wonderful festival and in particular Kurma Prabhu and Krishnarupa Mataji, Garuda and team in the kitchen preparing wonderful prasadam feasts, and everyone who contributed in any way to make this huge and important event a resounding success!
Vimala & Jayasila