The last weekend of May, 2002, a very auspicious event occurred in Montreal, Canada. The appearance day of Lord Nrisinghadeva simultaneously marked the auspicious 25th anniversary of the installation of Sri Sri Radha Manohara in Montreal, Canada. Months of preparation preceded the milestone event with the turnout surpassing the wildest hopes of the organizers. Invitations were sent far and wide resulting in hundreds of devotees arriving to celebrate the anniversary of the appearance of Their Lordships.

The celebration began at 10 a.m. with bhajanas being sung by various members of the congregation. This continued throughout the afternoon until  Pragosa Prabhu led a beautful guru-puja to Srila Prabhupada. Srila Prabhupada must have been pleased to see his large family of disciples and devotees joining together to pay homage to Sri Sri Radha Manohara. Their Lordships' name was personally chosen by Srila Prabhupada. Nandikeshvara and Mandari Prabhus related some of the details of bringing their Lordships to Montreal and how Srila Prabhupada had to repeat Their Names three times to ensure it was properly understood. Along with Gaur Nitai, the other sets of Deities in Montreal are Lord Jagannatha, Lord Balarama and Lady Subhadra, Who were worshiped personally by Srila Prabhupada during his stay in Montreal during the late 1960's.

  H.H. Bhakti Marga Swami prepares to bathe their Lordships, Sri Sri Radha Madana Mohan, as Raghu Mishra dasa prepares the conch. Nitai dasa (head pujari)  looks on and pujaris Krishna Chaitanya and Devanarayana Prabhus chant auspicious mantras behind Nitai Prabhu.

The altars were beautifully decorated by the pujaris Nitai, Raghu Mishra, Krsna Chaitanya, Devanarayana, Tulasi-seva and Ambika Prabhus, who decorated it from floor to ceiling with flowers, garlands, balloons and fruit. The day before, a small legion of devotees arrived to make flower garlands and decorate the temple. Though they are too numerous to name, their devotional efforts were instrumental in setting the mood of the festival and cannot be thanked enough. The abhisheka was spectacular with Vedic mantras sung by the local brahmanas and Sri Sri Radha Madana Mohan being bathed in the most opulent of ingredients while hundreds of devotees engaged in ecstatic kirtan. Senior devotees were heard to remark that it was like the old days and, as it should be, Sri Sri Radha Manohara was the center of it all.

A magnificent cake was prepared by Tulasi-seva dasi and Govinda Mohini dasi. Tulasi-seva and Govinda Mohini Prabhus mixed batter, cut up fruit and mixed icings throughout the day with an intensity and devotion only seen in a Deity kitchen. However, the many other devotees sharing the kitchen had little idea of the grandeur of Tulasi and Govinda Mohini's plans. Even as the icing and fruit began to grace the cakes, only they could envision what the final outcome would be as the many beautiful cakes were crafted by their hard work and devotion.

The kirtan was roaring with devotees sharing the lead when all of a sudden we began to see the cake take form. First came one cake, then another and another. By the end, there were nine in all. Then beautifully decorated staircases, pillars and other decorations were carefully placed on a large dais extending over the fountains in front of the Deities. Within the course of half an hour, during an ecstatic kirtan, the magnificent cake took shape and was offered to Radha Manohara as a symbol of our appreciation for everything They have done for the devotees in Montreal and Quebec. Believe it or not, the cakes tasted even better than they looked but you'll have to take our word for it because the evidence disappeared in minutes.

The Montreal temple room was gorgeously decorated with fresh flowers, festoons and banners. The large wall hangings were sewn by one of the local devotees and designed by Samir Prabhu, who was personally instructed to help develop and maintain the Montreal yatra by Srila Prabhupada. The temple room was repainted for the occasion. In a word, the temple room was gorgeous.

In organizing and bringing an event such as this to fruition, there are many unsung heroes who rarely get their due credit. Our greatest fear in mentioning some of them is that many others may be missed. However, it must be noted how beautiful the temple room was and it was no small feat in its achievement. The upstairs prasadam room and temple room were repainted which took many days and was achieved primarily through the efforts of Yure, who selflessly painted into the wee hours of the morning of the festival to get everything finished. As well, the temple was adorned by six large tapestries which were the contribution of Bhaktin Ira, who labored many weeks in their creation. Their combined effect brought praise and appreciation from the many visiting devotees.

The temple room was jammed to capacity and beautiful kirtans rocked the temple room. Many took turns leading kirtan including Vyasvamabara,  Nandikeshvara, Pragosa, Laksminatha, Gokulananda and Sahas Prabhus. Accompanying the kirtan were six mrdangas,  dozens of kartals and hundreds of dancing feet.

A festival in Montreal wouldn't be complete without the Ottawa devotees. They arrived 25 strong and had rented a bus to get them there safely. However, their participation was not confined just to chanting and dancing since they also helped out in the preparation of the feast. Their able assistance was an inspiration for the Montreal cooks which included Raghu Mishra, Laksminatha, Nitai, Gokulanananda, and Munya Swami Prabhus to name a few. As well, many devotees cooked in their homes, and in the end, Sri Sri Radha Manohara was offered a sumptuous feast of 108 preparations.

The prasadam hall was packed beyond its limit with so many devotees and congregation members relishing Radha Manohara's prasada. The feast was donated by Mr. and Mrs. Suchak who were able to attend the festivities. We pray they enjoyed the goings-on as much as the devotees did and the temple and congregation would like to thank them for their generosity.

All of the above occurred on Saturday with the fun and feasting continuing on Sunday. Sunday included recollections of Radha Manohara's devotees' pastimes plus kirtan and bhajanas. In the evening, Bhakti Marga Swami, who had spent several days whipping local and visiting actors into shape, presented a marvelous play of Hiranyakasipu's pastimes and slaying. As well as being full of spiritual meaning, during certain segments of the play, the devotees laughed until they nearly cried when Gokulananda, dressed as a woman, tried to win the favor of Hiranyakasipu. It was Gokulananda at his best.

So, let it be known, that Sri Sri Radha Manohara's 25th Appearance Day was nothing but an unqualified, spiritually enlivening success and the community thanks everyone who labored so hard to make it happen. As well, the community would like to thank the organizers, Vysvambhara, Laksminahta, Raghu Mishra, Samir and Sarada Prabhus spent many hours preparing for the festivities and contacting the devotees.

Sri Sri Radha Manohara, Sri Sri Radha Madana Mohan, Sri Sri Gaura Nitai and Lord Jagannatha, Baladeva and Subhadra ki jaya! We all fall at Your Lotus Feet and thank You for so kindly appearing in Montreal to inspire us in the  rekindling of our spiritual lives. And thank you Srila Prabhupada for turning us again towards the light of Krsna consciousness. Without your devotion and love for Krishna, we would never have had the opportunity to serve Radha Manohara nor would They have ever appeared before us without you. Your mercy cannot be described in words, so we simply fall at your feet and say "Thank You. May we somehow or other serve you eternally." All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

 
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