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All glories to Sri Sri Guru Gauranga.
A Personal Message from our beloved Acharya Srila Bhakti Pavan Janardan Maharaj to All Devotees and Friends of the Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Seva Ashram Community
An Invitation to Join Him at VegFest 2025 and Deities Installation Anniversary
Dearest Devotees, Friends, and Well-Wishers,
I offer my humble obeisances and dandavats to you all.
The final week of May will bring beautiful opportunities to get together in service, love, and sankirtan! With great joy, I warmly invite you to the Grande Festival in celebration of the anniversary of Sri Sri Guru Gauranga Gandarvika Giridhari on Thursday, May 29th, at 6 pm at the Seva Ashram. Please join us!
PREACHING FESTIVAL
Also, I invite you all to take part in one of the most extraordinary opportunities for seva and connection with the general public that our community will have this year: VegFest 2025, held at the Santa Cruz County Fairgrounds on Saturday, May 31st, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.
This vibrant festival will attract more than 5,000 people, and it is a great opportunity for sankirtan, prasadam, book distribution, and promoting the teachings of Srila Govinda Maharaj in several devotional activities.
Last year, by the mercy of Sri Gurudeva and the devoted seva of great servitors like Sri Sanatani Devi Dasi, Sri Vimala Devi Dasi, Sri Vaidehi Normand Devi Dasi, Sri Krishna Mohini Devi Dasi and so many of you, we distributed over 3,500 delicious ladhus, engaged thousands of seekers, and were honored with the recognition of offering the “best food in show.” More than 1,000 people got the teachings of Bhakti Yoga by downloading the e-book “The Kitchen of Love,” and we made many new friends who visited the temple throughout the year. You can visit this link to see last year’s photos.
This year, our presence will be amplified as we have been invited to shine even brighter:
✨ We will open the entire festival with a Mahakirtan on the main stage—what a glorious chance to sing the Holy Names for all to hear! We need all of you there to be impactful and sweet as Srila Gurudeva’s sankirtan.
📚 We will host two devotional booths offering prasadam, books, and spiritual conversation.
🎨 A children’s activity area, lovingly guided by Vaidehi Normand and team, will bring joy to young hearts.
🕉️ I will be offering a talk on Ahimsa and Bhakti Yoga in the auditorium, and your presence would be a true source of encouragement and strength.
But to make this happen, we need you—your hands, your hearts, and your spirits.
Here are some ways you can serve:
– Contribute donations toward ingredients and materials for prasadam and booth setup (https://www.sevaashram.com/donate/ please inform VEGFEST as the donation goal.)
– Help us cook and pack laddus before the festival (we will have a task force on the week of 27/28 May)
– Help us with transportation, booth set up (Friday, May 30th, afternoon and Saturday morning) and breaking down (Saturday, 6 pm)
– Join us on stage for Maha-sankirtan (Arrival by 10:00 am, we will perform at 11:00 am on the dot);
– Be present in the audience during my class, which starts at 11:30 a.m. at the lecture hall, I will appreciate having your warmth and support!
– Take a shift at the booths distributing prasadam and books, talking to the people about our temple and Bhakti Yoga!
All volunteers will receive free entry to the festival, but your names must be submitted in advance, so please let us know by May 26th. Kindly speak with Ananda Moyi Devi Dasi, who is coordinating this beautiful seva effort and has more details. Her contacts are: ananda.bortoletto@gmail.com and phone number (831) 266-8320.
Let us come together as one family, under the shelter of our beloved Srila Gurudeva, to offer His sweet, joyful, and meaningful teachings to the world. This is not just another event—it is a chance to share our hearts, uplift others, and reveal the beauty of our spiritual community.
With all affection and hope to see you there,
Your servant,
Srila Bhakti Pavan Janardan Maharaj
July 16 through July 23
All Glories to Sri Sri Gauranga!
Dear Devotees and Friends,
We are thrilled to invite you to the Sri Govinda Mela 2024 festival and retreat at the Soquel Seva Ashram from Tuesday, July 16th to Tuesday, July 23rd, 2024. This special event is dedicated to celebrating the life and teachings of Srila Bhakti Sundar Govinda-Dev Goswami Maharaj.
The festival will feature an array of inspiring international speakers, including:
- Srila Janardan Maharaj
- Srila Ashram Maharaj
- Sripad Nyasi Maharaj
- Sripad Puri Maharaj
- Sripad Devashis Prabhu
- Srimati Madhuchand Devi
- Srimati Krishna Kanta Devi
- Srimati Saraswati Devi
- Sripad Munindra Prabhu
- Sripad Sudarshana Prabhu
- Srimati Vaidehi Devi
- And many more!
The festival spans eight days, with the first two days (16th & 17th) for arrivals and setup, and the last two days (22nd & 23rd) for packing and departures. The main programs will run from Thursday to Sunday (18th to 21st).
Activities include:
- Morning Mangal Aratis
- Kirtans
- Sri Chaitanya Charitamrita Classes
- Temple Programs and Special Classes
- Sri Giriraj Mandir Program
- Beach Day
- Sankirtan
- Trivia Night
- Seva Connection opportunities
- Kids Activities
Give your energy to make Sri Govinda Mela more special
We ask everyone planning to attend to register with us as soon as possible to help us better organize the event. Additionally, we humbly request a donation of $25 per participant to help cover costs. However, please do not hesitate to join us even if you cannot make a donation—your presence is what truly matters.
Donations can be made on our website at http://SevaAshram.net/donate/ Please enter Govinda Mela in the comments field and the names of the devotees who will be attending. (This site works much better from a computer rather than a phone.)
Join one of the several seva groups to see how you can connect in seva during the beautiful festival.
New This Year: Join our Govinda Mela WhatsApp community for live updates throughout the festival, including class schedules and activities, and to join seva groups.
Follow our Facebook and Instagram pages for Sri Govinda Mela ’24 countdown posters with updates and several surprises!
How to Register:
- Online: [Click here to start your registration] (Please use a computer for a smoother registration process.)
- Email: You can complement your online registration by sending any extra details, including names of attendees and any comments or suggestions, to GovindaMela2024@gmail.com.
We look forward to celebrating with you and honoring Srila B.S. Govinda Sundar. For more information, connect to the Sri Govinda Mela Community or contact us at GovindaMela2024@gmail.com.
My dandavat pranams to you all,
Hasyapriya Das and the Soquel Seva Ashram Community
We are very happy to announce that the registration is now open for the Govinda Mela festival and retreat.
Govinda Mela 2022 will be held here at the Soquel Seva Ashram for 8 days starting Tuesday, July 19th through Tuesday, July 26th.
This schedule will allow two days (July 19th & 20th) for arriving and getting tents set up and two days (July 25th & 26th) for packing up and departure. The main programs will be held from Thursday through Sunday (July 21st to 24th).
The programs will include the morning mangal aratis and kirtans, bhajans and Sri Chaitanya Charitamrita class. Afternoon and evening programs will include the temple programs and special classes given by Srila Janardan Maharaj, Sripad Devashis Prabhu, Vishakha Devi, Sripad Sudarshan Prabhu and other devotees from our Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math family. Harinam sankirtan will be organized and of course the famous Santa Cruz beach bonfire! And we will again honor Sri Giriraj with His abhisheka (bathing ceremony) at the Sri Girirajraj mandir with chanting and dancing parikrama along the Via Govinda path to the top of the hill. Special programs will also be organized for the children.
We ask that everyone who is planning on coming to please register with us to help us better plan for the events. Also, we humbly request that each participant donate $25 to help cover the costs of the event. But please do not hesitate to register and come even if you cannot afford to give a donation!
Donations can be made on our website at http://SevaAshram.net/donate/ Please enter Govinda Mela in the comments field and the names of the devotees who will be attending. (This site works much better from a computer rather than a phone.)
Click here to register to Govinda Mela 2022.
If you have any difficulty accessing the registration form, please, contact us by sending an email at GovindaMela2022@gmail.com or contacting our team via text (WhatsApp) +1 (236) 818-3740. We will be happy to assist you to make this process fast and easy!
We will publish more information as it becomes available. And we value your comments and suggestions.
Divine Appearance of Srila Bhakti Pavan Janardan Maharaj
Sevaite-Acharya of the
Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Seva Ashram
Wednesday, January 29th
6 pm at the Soquel Seva Ashram
Dear Friend of the Ashram,
On Wednesday, January 29th at 6 pm please come out to celebrate our dear spiritual guide Srila Bhakti Pavan Janardan Maharaj, acharya of this Ashram and long time leader and inspiration to so many practitioners of bhakti yoga in the mission of Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math.
This event is a joyful opportunity to give due honor to Srila Janardan Maharaj and cherish our good fortune to have his spiritual guidance and leadership in our lives. There will of course, be a delicious feast afterwards.
I pray for your good association and that everyone will join together affectionately on this very happy and important day for our community.
Yours in the Lord’s service,
Sushila Devi Dasi
Watch the video of last year’s festival on Facebook. Click here…
Jivana Devi Dasi said on this occasion a few years ago:
“We have had the supreme good fortune of knowing Janardan Maharaj for so many years in ISKCON and even beyond. Not to embarrass Janardan Maharaj, but his depth of humility is so astonishing and so deep and so inspiring. Even when he was in ISKCON he was very well known and he had temples and money and all kinds of devotees at his disposal, but when Srila Prabhupad departed and he heard about Srila Guru Maharaj, he wanted to come to Srila Guru Maharaj. He felt something in his heart so strong for Srila Guru Maharaj and he very easily just left everything behind him to come to Srila Guru Maharaj….
He has so much affection for Srila Gurudev and Srila Gurduev loved Janardan Maharaj so much. He would always say so many beautiful things about him and just considered him one of his dear-most friends as well as a very qualified person for our mission. We are very fortunate for that. Srila Gurudev would sometimes comment how Janardan Maharaj at one point turned everybody over to Srila Gurudev with no hesitation, with great happiness, and Srila Gurudev was always very astonished at his beautiful humble mood and his genuine affection for him. I can’t say enough wonderful things about Janardan Maharaj, how much love and affection he’s given us, how much guidance he’s given us. He’s stuck through so many things, through thick and thin–never caring that we give him the proper respect or not. So many times we are always joking with him in so many ways, but deep in our hearts we are very grateful for Janardan Maharaj….”
About Srila Janardan Maharaj:
Have you ever listened to Janardan Maharaj’s daily reading of Sri Chaitanya Charitamrita by Srila Krishnadas Kaviraj Goswami? Here’s the first chapter of this incredible scripture:
120724 Adi 1a The Spiritual Masters.mp3 (64 minutes, 44.6 MB)*
120725 Adi 1b The Spiritual Masters.mp3 (48 minutes, 33.3 MB)
The first chapter begins with fourteen Sanskrit verses giving ontology so that we can understand the pastimes and what is going to be presented in the Sri Chaitanya Charitamrita. The first six verses describe Mahaprabhu, then the next five describe Nityananda Prabhu. The next two verses describe the truth of Adwaita Prabhu and the following verse describes the Pancha-tattva.
Listen to hundreds of lectures on our website. Click here…
Biography of Srila Bhakti Pavan Janardan Maharaj Click here…
An excerpt: “Srila Janardan Maharaj continued to travel and preach on behalf of Srila Govinda Maharaj and his relationship with him developed more and more and became deeper and deeper as the years went by. Srila Janardan Maharaj would visit India regularly and personally collected donations on behalf of the central Math. He would also participate in the Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math Nabadwip Dham Parikrama in a glorious way bringing so much inspiration to the devotees and much joy to Srila Govinda Maharaj’s heart.
Finally, before leaving this world, Srila Govinda Maharaj declared in his Last Will and Testament “And in America Sripad Janardan Maharaj is a perfect personality. He is a perfect gentlemen. He will be Acharya. He is Acharya already but has given all the respect to me; I am giving in return to him. Sripad Janardan Maharaj will become the Acharya and Sevaite of the Soquel Math.” So, under Srila Govinda Maharaj’s instruction, Srila Janardan Maharaj has continued to care for and serve his divine mission.”
If you happened to download the new calendar, please delete the file and replace it with the one below. Some dates were miscalculated. The ekadasi dates were correct.
To view the current Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math Vaishnava Calendar for 2019-2020 with ekadasi dates and paran times calculated for California click below:
2019-2020 Vaishnava Calendar
Purchase tickets here on our secure site:
[add_to_cart item=”001″ quantity=”user:1″ text=”Purchase Tickets” ]
Purchase tickets now for this beautiful festival of classical Indian dancing in the Kathak tradition presented by Sangita Nandy’s Kathak Kala Vihar Dance School. This is a benefit concert and all proceeds will be donated to the Vaishnava Seva Society
The concert will be held at Santa Clara University Mayer Theater on January 19, 2013 at 5:00pm. Click here for driving directions and parking information for SCU Mayer Theater.
The whole family, including your children, will enjoy this wonderful dance concert. Don’t miss this exciting opportunity!
Here is what others have said about Sangita Nandy’s Kathak Kala Vihar Dance concerts:
Legendary Kathak maestro Nrityashiromani Gugu Bandana Sen – “It feels great to see our rich cultural heritage being passed on with such enthusiasm to the younger generation, even though they are not in India.”
J. Sharma – “We had the most wonderful evening at Sangita Nandy’s Kathak Kala Dance concert. And our daughter loved it so much she wanted to start taking lessons!”