Hey all today is Sri Krishna's appearance day! Yay! Gopala Radha Lola Murali Lola Nandalala Gopala Radha Lola Keshava Madhava Janardhana Vanamala Brindavana Pala Murali Lola Nandalala Gopala, the beloved of Radha. Lover of the flute, son of Nanda. O Keshava! O Madhava! Thou art the Saviour of all humanity (Janardhana). Thou art the Protector (Pala) of Brindavan, the darling little son of Nanda. May we all welcome the baby Krishna (balla Krishna in Sanskrit...see I do remember some things!) into our hearts on this day... and live with the great love and devotion of the gopis
BHAGAVAD-GITA AS IT IS, CHAPTER 10, TEXT 12-13. TRANSLATION (ARJUNA IS SPEAKING TO SRI KRISHNA)Arjuna said: You are the Supreme Brahman, the ultimate, the supreme abode and purifier, the Absolute Truth and the eternal divine person. You are the primal God, transcendental and original, and You are the unborn and all-pervading beauty. All the great sages such as Narada, Asita, Devala, and Vyasa proclaim this of You, and now You Yourself are declaring it to me. WE SHOULD ALL REMEMBER THAT THURSDAY, AUGUST 17, 2006, IS THE 110th APPEARANCE ANNIVERSARY OF HIS DIVINE GRACE A.C. BHAKTIVEDANTA SWAMI PRABHUPADA, AND OFFER HIM OUR MOST HUMBLE OBEISANCES, FOR HE IS THE GREAT SOUL WHO BROUGHT THE HARE KRISHNA MAHA-MANTRA AND ALL KNOWLEDGE OF SRI KRISHNA TO AMERICA AND THE WESTERN WORLD, TO BE GIVEN FREELY TO EVERYONE! ALL GLORIES TO LORD SRI KRISHNA JANMASTAMI! ALL GLORIES TO SRILA PRABHUPADA'S APPEARANCE DAY!
Hope everyone had a great day. Far be it from me to complain - but I can't read this thread on my laptop without having to keep on scrolling from left to right. Lovely pic, but a bit smaller would do Krishna just as much honour.
Sorry there...I don't know how to shrink it in the format that this forum is set up in...I only know HTML. I didn't know it was this big until I posted it...it was smaller on the website...but its so nice...I left it... Sorry for the trouble.... --- Krishna's Birthday Bash Krishna, the blue-faced prankster, is a beloved Hindu deity. His birthday, Janmashtami, is a joyous day with a serious message. By Lavina Melwani A Janmashtami celebration at Boston's Hare Krishna temple To know Lord Krishna is to adore him. He is the blue-skinned God, the eighth incarnation of Vishnu, Preserver of the World. He is the Cosmic Cowherd, the mischievous deity that Hindus love the most for his pranks, for his butter-thievery, for his melodious flute, for his romantic interludes with Gopis, the milkmaids. He fought demons, danced on the mighty serpent's head and lifted Govardhana hill with his little finger, using it like an umbrella, to protect the people from torrential rains. Yet one anecdote encompasses it all: as a naughty child hankering after butter, he would stand on the shoulders of other children to reach the pots of butter that hung from the ceiling. His mother, sure the incriminating proof was in his mouth, ordered him to open his mouth. She was mesmerized to see entire universes in the child's mouth, and knew then that all the incidents were merely part of the Lord's Leela or celestial play. Janmashtami--the birth of Lord Krishna--is Aug. 16 this year. It is little surprise that devotees gather in the hundreds, in the thousands, in temples across India and around the world. It is a very special and festive day, and they wait in anticipation, surrounding the symbolic baby crib, singing devotional songs. It's a day of exuberant celebration befitting the birthday of a beloved deity, yet Janmashtami also has a much deeper message: It's a reminder to do one's duty in life, no matter how difficult, and to keep on the path of dharma, to surrender one's life to Krishna because all else is maya, or illusion. The story behind the birth of Krishna is intriguing, and one most Hindu children have grown up with: the wicked King Kansa had been told that he would meet his death at the hands of his yet unborn nephew. To thwart that, he had his only sister Devaki and her husband Vashdev imprisoned, and murdered each of their seven sons as they were born. Just as the eighth child--Lord Krishna--was born, the prison locks magically opened and Vashdev managed to escape with the baby Krishna in a wicker basket on his head. The river was raging but touching the divine baby's feet, it receded. Krishna was brought up by a simple cowherd Nand and his wife Yashoda, and the evil Kansa did meet his death at his hands, as it was foretold. Krishna is the vanquisher of all evil and the guide for right living. In the mighty Mahabharata war in which the Pandavas battled their kinsmen, the Kauravas, he drove the Pandava warrior Arjuna's chariot and instructed him to perform his duty, to be on the side of dharma or righteousness. When Arjuna hesitated to fight against his own brethren, Krishna enlightened him with wisdom that encompasses all aspects of living. These words are immortalized in the 700 slokas of the Bhagavad Gita or the Song of the Lord, which has sustained people across the world. Why do Hindus love Krishna so much? He is the all-pervading, omnipresent One without whom even a leaf cannot stir, but he assumes a very accessible human form, becoming babe, naughty child, son, friend and lover. There is an instant bonding and connection between this deity and his devotees because Krishna is all about love. http://www.beliefnet.com/story/173/story_17368_1.html
**bump** Tomorrow is Janmashtami (one of my favourite holidays) so I wanted to bump this so we could think about Lord Krishna all day long. Madhurashtakam Adharam Madhuram, Vadanam Madhuram Nayanam Madhuram, Hasitham Madhuram Hrudhayam Madhuram, Gamanam Madhuram Madhuradhipather Akhilam Madhuram Sweet are thine lips, Krishna, So is thine sweet cherubic face, Sweet are thine jet black eyes, Krishna So is thine soulful laugh, Sweet is thine loving heart, Krishna So is thine beautiful gait, Hey king of all sweetness in this world, Everything about Thee is sweet. Vachanam Madhuram, Charitam Madhuram Vasanam Madhuram, Valitham Madhuram Chalitham Madhuram, Bramitham Madhuram Madhuradhipather Akhilam Madhuram So is thine divine story. Sweet are thine movements, Krishna, Everything about Thee is sweet. Sweet are thine sweetest words, Krishna, Sweet is the place of your stay , Krishna, So is thine greatness, So is thine confusion. Hey king of all sweetness in this world Venur Madhura, Renur Madhura Panir Madhura, Padhou Madhura, Nrithyam Madhuram, Sakhyam Madhuram Madurathipather Akhilam Maduram Sweet are thine hands Krishna, So are thine feet. Sweet is thine flute , Krishna, So is thine foot-dust, Sweet is thine dance Krishna, So is thine friendship. Hey king of all sweetness in this world, Everything about Thee is sweet Geetham Madhuram, Peetham Madhuram Bhuktham Madhuram, Suptham Madhuram Roopam Madhuram, Thilakam Madhuram Madurathipather Akhilam Maduram Everything about Thee is sweet. Sweet is thine song, Krishna, So is what you drink, Sweet is what you eat, Krishna, So is your sleep, Sweet are thine looks , Krishna, So is thine Thilaka, Hey king of all sweetness in this world, Karanam Madhram, Tharanam Madhuram Haranam Madhuram, Ramanam Madhuram Vamitham Madhuram, Samitham Madhuram Madurathipather Akhilam Madhuram Sweet are thine deeds, Krishna, So is thine path of salvation, Sweet is thine theft , Krishna, So is thine play of love, Sweet are thine oblations, Krishna So is thine tranquility, Hey king of all sweetness in this world, Everything about Thee is sweet Gunja Madhura, Mala Madhura Yamuna Madhura, Veechi Madhura Salilam Madhuram, Kamalam Madhuram Madhurathipather Akhilam Madhuram So is thine garland, Sweet is thine river Yamuna, Krishna, So are the ripples in the river, Sweet is thine water , Krishna, Sweet is thine necklace of berries, Krishnam So is the lotus in the water, Hey king of all sweetness in this world, Everything about Thee is sweet Gopi Madhura, Leela Madhura, Yuktham Madhuram, Muktham Madhuram, Drishtam Madhuram,Sishtam Madhram, Madhurathipather akhilam Madhuram Sweet are thine Gopis, Krishna So is thine playful sport, Sweet are thine right thoughts,Krishna, So is thine salvation, Sweet is what you see, Krishna, So is what is left out, Hey king of all sweetness in this world, Everything about Thee is sweet Gopa Madhura, Gavo Madhura, Yashtir Madhura, Srushtir Madhra, Dhalitham Madhram, Phalitham Madhuram Madhurathipather akhilam Madhuram Sweet are thine Gopas , Krishna So are thine cows, Sweet is thine staff, Krishna So is thine creation, Sweet is what you trample, Krishna So are thine jokes, Hey king of all sweetness in this world, Everything about you is sweet. Madhurathipather akhilam Madhuram... Hey king of all sweetness in this world Everything about you is sweet.
I just wanted to bump this on going thread of annual Krishna love and madness to wish you all a happy Janmashtami. I've been a bit of a lurker lately b/c its summer...buuuut school's coming soon so you may see me a bit more often. Anyway...happy Janmashtami...may the beautiful Lord Krishna bless you now, forever and always: Nothing is really mine Nothing is really mine except Krishna. O my parents, I have searched the world And found nothing worthy of love. Hence I am a stranger amidst my kinfolk And an exile from their company, Since I seek the companionship of holy men; There alone do I feel happy, In the world I only weep. I planted the creeper of love And silently watered it with my tears; Now it has grown and overspread my dwelling. You offered me a cup of poison Which I drank with joy. Mira is absorbed in contemplation of Krishna, She is with God and all is well! ~ Mirabai http://photos-c.ak.************/photos-ak-sf2p/v289/113/105/919838/n919838_39448778_4027.jpg for some reason all the figures were in fenced boxes...
