On Pilgrimage.

After completing the bhakti-sastri examinations and finishing the course, I decided to take a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and attend the annual Navadvipa Mandala Parikrama (pilgrimage) sponsored by ISKCON Mayapur every year. On March 9 we ventured out by boat, early in the auspicious hours of pre-dawn while the fog was still hovering above Mother Ganga. The parikrama was one week long and consisted of walking, boating, and camping throughout all nine islands that make up the region known as Navadvipa-dhama, "the crest jewel of all holy places". Over 1000 pilgrims from all around the world, including Sweden, Russia, Australia, Brazil, and China, were in attendance. The spiritual potency of traveling, praying, and serving with so many devotees was literally an out-of-this-world experience.
Hours and hours of walking and chanting afforded incredible opportunities to see the natural landscape of West Bengal and observe the simple life and culture of her inhabitants. His Holiness Jayapataka Swami led the pilgrimage and personally saw to it that everyone was well taken care of, well-fed, well-rested, healthy and happy. Guru Maharaj is the best friend anyone could ask for. His attention and focus on pleasing the devotees is pure inspiration. At each stop we would gather and listen to him speak about the significance of each holy tirtha and listen to the various pastimes of great personalities who had come before us, sometimes thousands of years previous.
Over the years, how many millions of pilgrims have walked these well worn paths?

"For those who walk throughout Navadvipa, the benefit of millions of asvamedha yajnas are accrued with each step, and the bonds of maya are cut along with the cycle of repeated birth and death."

-Gauradesa by Manjari devi dasi "In three nights in Navadvipa-dhama, one gets the results of ten years of practices performed in other tirthas."

-Gauradesa by Manjari devi dasi

"Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Thakur once said that dhama means nama. One might ask why: The explanation is that the holy name will purify us so that we can see the dhama not with our material eyes but with our spiritualized eyes."

-Dhama Sevamrta

"When someone calls out the names of Nitai and Caitanya, krsna-prema comes looking for him." -Srila Bhaktivinode Thakura

"The act of going on pilgrimage represents the search of the soul for God."

-Dhama Sevamrta

"If one visits a tirtha and only does some shopping and takes a ritual bath there, without inquiring from saintly persons his visit is useless."

-Narada bhakti-sutra

"When we arrive at a holy place we must be ready for some serious work: We must uncover the layer of illusion which is covering the dhama to reach the spiritual essence, That is the spiritual place where Lord Krsna manifests. It is said that the holy dhama is not visible to the eyes of mundane people."

-Dhama Sevamrta

"What is it that covers the soul: False ego, which is the subtlest and finest and all the other elements grosser and grosser unto the physical manifestations. And those are the coverings of the heart which are also the coverings of the holy dhama. Because the heart is also the dhama. Dhama means residence of the Lord. So when that manifestation from the false ego down to the most solid concrete physical manifestation earth is reversed from service to ego, then the spiritual elements which are eternity, knowledge and bliss manifest. And the key to all loving relationships is keeping Krsna in the center. And that is the holy dhama, where Krsna is in the center." -His Holiness Varsana Swami

May the dhama be with you!