Festivals of Transcendental Life

Every year since time immemorial, millions of people have journeyed to India's holy city Jagannatha Puri to take part in a joyous transcendental festival-Ratha-yatra, the Festival of the Chariots-to glorify the Lord of the universe. When Srila Prabhupada was a small child in Calcutta, he insisted to his father that he too wanted to celebrate the Ratha-yatra festival. Thus his father built him a small cart, and Srila Prabhupada led his neighborhood friends in chanting Hare Krsna and celebrating the festival as their childhood play. Later in life, when Srila Prabhupada became the spiritual master of the Hare Krsna movement, he led his disciples in celebrating the same transcendental festival, on a large scale, in major cities throughout the world-San Francisco, New York, London, and many others. Thus he showed how to give millions of people the opportunity to chant Hare Krsna, dance in ecstasy, take krsna-prasada, and begin the journey back home, back to Godhead.

In addition to establishing temples for festivals in major cities of the world, Srila Prabhupada also inspired and organized his disciples to travel from city to city, town to town, to preach the message of Krsna everywhere. From American suburbs to African tribal villages, Sri Prabhupada's disciples, following in the footsteps of their spiritual master, chant Hare Krsna and distribute literature about Krsna consciousness for the benefit of others. Feeling compassion for those unfortunate souls who had forgotten Krsna, Srila Prabhupada was always immersed in the mood of the great devotee Prahlada Maharaja, who once prayed to the Lord: "O best of great personalities, I am not at all afraid of material existence, for wherever I stay I am fully absorbed in thoughts of Your glories and activities. My concern is only for the fools and rascals who are making elaborate plans for material happiness and maintaining their families, societies and countries. I am simply concerned with love for them."