New Vrindaban Brijabasi Spirit

Follow Up For New Vrindaban’s Transcendental Throwback Thursday – 04/17/14.

The image quality of this week’s photo is poor, which makes the details quite pixelated and therefore only a handful of people have been properly identified.

The good news is we got lots of historical details about the photo from people who were in New Vrindaban at the time.

Therefore, rather than try to identify individuals in the photo, we will share a good bit of background info about the photo itself.

Soma recalled:

“[This photo is from the] 1974 Janmastami and Vyasa Puja festival. I remember the pic being taken. I am in the back by the right silo. The barn was not finished. Prasadam was served out upstairs, it was still one big room. Visnujana Swami is standing in the upstairs door way.”

Madhava Gosh added:

“I remember the sparks from the spot-welding work a hired work crew did on the newly constructed grain silos. Watching the flickering lights and listening to the Radha Damodar electrified kirtan made me feel like I was at a rock concert. For prasadam distribution I used a tractor with a bucket to deliver a feast through the still open side of the second floor at the barn. Throughout the entire festival the rain was so intense that several small bridges washed out in the Moundsville & Wheeling area.”

Hrishikesh shared:

“Vaiyasaki prabhu wrote about it in his book, Radha-Damodara Vilasa, Vol. 2. He devotes 8 pages to this 1974 Janmastami festival at NV. I highly recommend everyone read this book. Some highlights: Sri Sri Radha-Damodara stayed at the newly-built barn, Radhanath dasa was the pujari at the Old Vrindaban farm, and he brought Radha-Vrindaban Nath to Bahulaban for the festival. The temple mangal aroti was at 4:15 am and immediately following, devotees ran to the barn for the aroti for Radha-Damodara. Bhakti Tirtha Swami (Ghanashyama) was at the festival. Accommodations were spartan. Many visiting devotees slept on hay bales. It rained and rained and everything turned into mud. Everyone’s sleeping bags were soaked. Visnujana led an all-night kirtan on Janmastami–12 or 14 hours some said. Vaiyasaki says the 1974 Brijabasi population was 40 devotees. The others in the photo are visiting ISKCON devotees.”

And Vaiyasaki himself added:

“All my memories are in my book – 8 pages full of [New Vrindaban] memories. You can buy the book [Radha Damodara Vilas, Vol. 2] at kirtan.org and receive it within a few days.”

Here’s a link: http://kirtan.org/kirtan_books.php

Additionally, there is a Back To Godhead article titled, “New Vrindaban: Three Occasions for Transcendental Festivals,” written by Vishaka-devi dasi and published April 1974, which invited all readers to attend these festivals scheduled for later that summer.

Here’s a link to the article: http://www.brijabasispirit.com/2014/02/03/new-vrindaban-three-occasions-for-transcendental-festivals-btg-article-april-1974/

Finally, the photo itself was published in a January 1976 Back To Godhead article titled, “Chanting the Hare Krishna Mantra” with the heading, “Devotees at ISKCON’s New Vrindaban Farm Community in Moundsville, West Virginia.”

Here’s a link to the article: http://back2godhead.com/chanting-the-hare-krishna-mantra-2/

A synopsis of the info we have:

What: A group photo in front of the partially constructed cow barn.

When: Janmastami & Vyasa Puja celebrations, August 1974.

Where: Bahulaban, New Vrindaban.

Photographer: Vishaka-devi dasi. First published January, 1976 in the Back To Godhead magazine.

Thanks for participating. Let’s do it again next week!

Special Request: If you have a photo showcasing New Vrindaban residents in action, from the ’70s, ’80s, ’90s and ’00s, please send it to us and we can share it in a future posting.

CORRECTION For New Vrindaban’s Transcendental Throwback Thursday – 04/17/14.

Getting an accurate history on photos from 40 years ago can be both fun and a challenge.

As it turns out, in our previous report, we got the right event, but were off by a year.

Below a few long-time Brijabasis share clarifying info:

Nityodita: That photo was August 1975, not 1974. I was there but not in the photo. Gaura Shakti can probably confirm. We were both initiated at the barn in 75. I joined NV in Dec 74 and I saw Visnujana Swami in 75 in NV during the Janmastami celebration.

Dharmakala: I have a correction about the picture taken in front of the barn. I was there also. The year was 1975. I got my second initiation that day. This picture was taken along with the movie Yadubara and Vishaka filmed in New Vrindaban,”The Spiritual Frontier.”

Viduttama: That was the year Yadubara and Vishaka did the filming on Govindaji Hill. They filmed from a helicopter. It had to be 1975. I also have the BTG this was in. Sarva and I came to NV Nov 2 1974 and if my memory serves me right the Radha Damodar party was in attendance. Almost everyone in NV at the time was in this photo. I see Vijaya, Rupa, Veda Mata, Lakhima, all the cowherd boys. The list goes on and on. That’s me in the front row with a pink and orange sari on. Look for Mankumari she was always the tallest!

Here’s the info we have:

What: A group photo in front of the cow barn.

When: Janmastami & Vyasa Puja celebrations, August 1975.

Where: Bahulaban, New Vrindaban.

Photographer: Vishaka-devi dasi. First published January, 1976 in the Back To Godhead magazine.

Thanks for participating. Let’s do it again next week!

Special Request: If you have a photo showcasing New Vrindaban residents in action, from the ’70s, ’80s, ’90s and ’00s, please send it to us and we can share it in a future posting.