GEETHA PATIL
CHICAGO: A popular summer event, Hindola/Phala Utsav, was held at the Hindu Mandir of Lake County, Grayslake, a north side suburb of Chicago August 18 with around 300 devotees attending.
The program started with Sankalpam, and Lord Krishan’s Abhishekam. Yogesh Pandey chanted Vedic mantras while priest Anil Joshi performed Abhishekam. A beautifully dressed Lord Krishna idol was placed in a colorfully decorated swing in the midst of 70 families’ Krishna statues.
Delicious fruits and juices were offered to all the deities with much veneration and adoration. Melodious bhajans were sung by Rita Patel and Atul Soni. Joshi, in his brief Pravachan, said that such fruits and juices were arranged by Ma Yashoda in the forest when the young Krishna took cows for grazing for the first time.
He further said that in the Kali Yuga, Maha Prabhu Valabhacharya rejuvenated the Hindola celebration for his much loved Lord Krishna. The message given here was that, according to the Bhagavad Gita, whatever is there in the nature belongs to Lord Krishna. One needs to take his permission before use and also share these with others.
