BY DEVIKA C. MEHTA
DOWNEY, CA - Shree Swaminarayan Satsang Mandal of California (SSSM) temple in Downey celebrated its Mini-Patotsav from June 9-11 in honor of Acharya 1008 Shree Rakeshprasad Maharaj’s arrival from India. The temple marked the occasion by arranging a special program ‘Shree Krishna Katha Parayan’
DOWNEY, CA - Shree Swaminarayan Satsang Mandal of California (SSSM) temple in Downey celebrated its Mini-Patotsav from June 9-11 in honor of Acharya 1008 Shree Rakeshprasad Maharaj’s arrival from India. The temple marked the occasion by arranging a special program ‘Shree Krishna Katha Parayan’
for three consecutive days, attended by devotees in an environment of hymns and chants. The celebration first began on June 9, when Shastri Swami Devprakashdas gave an inspiring, a series of discourses ‘Shree Krishna Katha Parayan’in which he expounded on the beginnings of the Lord Krishna’s story, its growth and how it has evolved to what it is today.
He also instructed devotees on the guidelines and principles of the religion which if followed would result in happiness, help the individual grow in stature and develop confidence.
The ‘Katha’ continued on the second day with religious lessons from Shastri Devprakashdas to a huge gathering.
During the culmination of the celebrations on June 11, the main hall of the temple filled up very soon as the Keshar-Abhishek of temple idols began early in the morning. The ceremony was performed by Acharya Maharajshree along with his younger brother.
On the final day, the curtains were drawn for the decoration of deities.Meanwhile, fruits and delicacies were prepared by hundreds of worshippers for the Annakut Darshan. Later, the packed hall went up in a cheer on seeing the beautifully decorated idols and the colorful display of food spread across the far end of the hall. The event ended with Annakut Aarti and the serving of a Mahaprasad. All offered fruits were later distributed among all attendees. According to Raman Patel, temple ex-president, “Nearly 350 people participated in the entire event making it a huge success. We had tremendous response from our temple devotees. The program was very successful and we take pride in hosting such events in future, too.”
He also instructed devotees on the guidelines and principles of the religion which if followed would result in happiness, help the individual grow in stature and develop confidence.
The ‘Katha’ continued on the second day with religious lessons from Shastri Devprakashdas to a huge gathering.
During the culmination of the celebrations on June 11, the main hall of the temple filled up very soon as the Keshar-Abhishek of temple idols began early in the morning. The ceremony was performed by Acharya Maharajshree along with his younger brother.
On the final day, the curtains were drawn for the decoration of deities.Meanwhile, fruits and delicacies were prepared by hundreds of worshippers for the Annakut Darshan. Later, the packed hall went up in a cheer on seeing the beautifully decorated idols and the colorful display of food spread across the far end of the hall. The event ended with Annakut Aarti and the serving of a Mahaprasad. All offered fruits were later distributed among all attendees. According to Raman Patel, temple ex-president, “Nearly 350 people participated in the entire event making it a huge success. We had tremendous response from our temple devotees. The program was very successful and we take pride in hosting such events in future, too.”