SLOKA OF THE WEEK:

Śrī Caitanya Caritāmṛta Madhya 13.13
viśvambhara jagannāthe ke cālāite pāre?
āpana icchāya cale karite vihāre

viśvambhara — the maintainer of the universe; jagannāthe — Lord Jagannātha; ke — who; cālāite — cause to be carried; pāre — can; āpana — personal; icchāya — by His will; cale — moves; karite — to act; vihāre — in pastimes.

TRANSLATION

Lord Jagannātha is the maintainer of the whole universe. Who can carry Him from one place to another? The Lord moves by His personal will just to perform His pastimes.

JOURNAL:

Today is Ratha Yatra here in Portland, Oregon.

PICTURE OF THE WEEK (from lalive.info):

What: Ratha Yatra
When: July 21, 2012
Where: Waterfront Park in downtown Portland, Oregon

PICTURE OF THE WEEK (from the Sampradaya Sun):

WHAT: "The Festival of the Chariots"
WHERE: Golden Gate Park, San Francisco
WHEN: Sunday, July 22, 2012

PICTURE OF THE WEEK (from the Sampradaya Sun):


By 1969, the poster design for San Francisco's Ratha Yatra had changed dramatically. Moving to brilliant day-glo colors, the 1969 poster measured 28" by 11", and read:

HARE KRISHNA ~ RATHAYATRA San Francisco's Parade of Joyous ecstasy through Golden Gate Park to the Sea Starts Noon At Haight And Ashbury

JOURNAL:

See this blog's San Francisco 1967 page for the first (1967) Ratha Yatra poster.

Ratha Yatra in Beaverton, Oregon

We are glad to announce that we will be taking their Lordships, Lord Jagannath,Lord Baladev, and Lady Subhadra one more time this summer for Ratha Yatra by participating in the Beaverton Parade. We will be meeting at the temple on August 27 at 7:15 AM. Hope to see each one of you with your friends and family.

Your Servants at
ISKCON Hillsboro
2095 NW Aloclek Drive
Suite 1107 & 1109,
Hillsboro, OR.

PICTURE OF THE WEEK (from Lajjarani dd):

Ratha Yatra in Portland, Oregon (July 16, 2011)

PICTURE OF THE WEEK (from Lajjarani dd):

JOURNAL:

Yesterday's Ratha Yatra was a great success! By noon the sun was shinning and at four, when we had finally finished the preparations, it was warm with just a touch of high clouds in the sky. I saw some of the old devotees that I used to hang out with in the late nineties and found out that they are holding a program here in Portland on Sunday afternoons. The location is such that I will be able to attend.

I started the walk pushing a cart full of bananas to be distributed as prasadam. I was happy to do this service. After being relieved I distributed some of them myself, picking groups of homeless people that others were unsure of approaching. Living on the road as I am made this a perfect service for me to do. During the return trip I was allowed to carry the palanquin and was overjoyed at the opportunity!

We finished the afternoon with an hour and a half kirtan. Ecstatically dancing and singing in front of Lord Jaganatha and His brother and sister was so good! I left tired and satisfied.

All glories to Srila Prabhupada for bringing this tradition to America! All glories to the devotees who have continued it! Ki Jai Jaganatha!

SLOKA OF THE WEEK:

Śrī Caitanya Caritāmṛta
Madhya Lila 13.169
sūryera kiraṇe mukha kare jhalamala
mālya, vastra, divya alańkāra, parimala

sūryera — of the sun; kiraṇe — by the rays of sunshine; mukha — the face; kare — does; jhalamala — glittering; mālya — garland; vastra — garments; divya alańkāra — beautiful ornaments; parimala — surrounded by a fragrance.

TRANSLATION

Lord Jagannātha was garlanded, dressed with nice garments and adorned with beautiful ornaments. His face was glittering from the rays of sunshine, and the entire atmosphere was fragrant.

JOURNAL:

Today is Ratha Yatra here in Portland, Oregon (See July 13 entry for schelude). There is a fine mist in the air, not really rain, and I hope it does not dappen the spirits of the devotees. I am looking forward to this event and rain or not I will be waiting for Lord Jaganatha with the maha-mantra of my tounge.

SLOKA OF THE DAY:

Bhagavad Gita As It Is -
Chapter 14 Text 14
yada sattve pravrddhe tu
pralayam yati deha-bhrt
tadottama-vidam lokan
amalan pratipadyate

yada--when; sattve--the mode of goodness; pravrddhe--developed; tu--but; pralayam--dissolution; yati--goes; deha-bhrt--the embodied; tada--at that time; uttama-vidam--of the great sages; lokan--the planets; amalan--pure; pratioadyate--attains.

TRANSLATION

When one dies in the mode of goodness, he attains to the pure higher planets of the great sages.

JOURNAL:

My japa session this morning felt good and right. These days I walk down to the Willamette River here in Portland, Oregon and bring out a picture of Sri Sri Radha Krishna, a picture of Srila Prabhupada, and a picture of Jaganatha's smiling face. There is a lot of traffic on the bridges above me which forces me to chant loudly. Still, the setting is peaceful enough and I have been enjoying my sessions with the Holy Names immensely.

This Saturday will be Ratha Yatra here and I am looking forward to it. I have never had the opportunity to participate in one before. The devotees are now coming into the city on a weekly basis and their association is invaluable to me.

All glories to the devotees of Srila Prabhupada and Lord Sri Krishna!

Ratha Yatra in Portland, Oregon

We are very glad to announce of our first Ratha Yatra, which will be this coming saturday 16th july starting from the Water front close to Saturday Market and will end back at the water front.
Devotees are kindly requested to meet at waterfront at 345p for prep work.

345p-4p Prep for the deities
4p - Breaking of coconut and Aarti for the Lord
410p- Procession taking the Lord from waterfront along the walkway to the foot of Hawthorne Bridge.
530p returning back to Waterfront
Kirtan 530p-6p
615p winding up and leaving

PICTURE OF THE WEEK (from Krishna.com):

Ratha Yatra Cart by Akunthita devi dasi