GEETHA PATIL
BOSTON: The ISKCON Boston temple organized one of its biggest festivals, Ratha Yatra, which is a public procession with a chariot with idols of Jagannath (Vishnu avatar), Balabhadra (his brother), and Subhadra (his sister) June 3, attracting more than 3,000 devotees.
The procession started at noon from 1 Cambria Street and moved to Boston Common Park amidst ecstatic singing, unique music, drumming, and dancing by the devotees in colorful traditional costumes . The devotees batch-by-batch hand-pulled the chariot with ropes forward and also swept the road for the chariot with great devotion and consecration.
Shri Rama Raya Prabhu along with 15 Brahmacharis from Harinam Ashram, New York City, graced the procession with their presence among the devotees.
Following more than two miles of spectacular parade, a grand celebration awaited the crowd, including an exhibition showcasing India´s spirituality and culture. The festival site featured tents with various forms of entertainment, dancing, live music, a free lunch, shopping, Vedic culture, literature, arts, and kids’ activities in the surrounding area.
Lord Jagannath’s arrival was marked by kirtans sung by devotees. Radhika Patel welcomed all the devotes to the post parade event. Thought provoking talks were given by Niranjana Swami, Jayadvaita Swami and Chandrashekhar Swami. Suchita Rao and Kishori Yatra group, Chatamayi and Dasi Group sang beautiful kirtans and also made the devotees to sing with them.
Dances were performed by Dasi group, Karuna, and Melissa. Concluding remarks were made by Madhavanand Prabhu. Vanamali Pandit Dasa thanked all the participants for their active participation in the event and making it a grand success.
