This Sunday 24^th June marks the 50^th ISKCON London Ratha Yatra festival. 

The procession will leave South Carriage Drive, Hyde Park at exactly 12 noon and arrive at Trafalgar Square by 2pm. Festivities will continue until 5pm.

“The first London Rathayatra was held in 1969,” said London Ratha Yatra coordinator Titiksu das, “Six pioneering American devotees came to London to establish a temple to bring others to Krishna by the chanting of the Hare Krishna mantra.

“In the early months of 1969, before they had managed to establish a temple, Shymasundara das had carved the beautiful deities of Jagannatha, Baladeva and Subhadra. And so it was, in July that year, five months before the Radha Krishna Temple was opened in Bury Place, the first London Rathayatra proceeded from Hyde Park to Trafalgar Square. This was an historic milestone for the Krishna consciousness movement in the UK.

“Over the years, the festival has grown in size to more than 5,000 people on the procession, 30,000 people in Trafalgar Square, 3 Chariots and 20,000 plates of prasadam distributed!

“For me the 50th is an opportunity to reflect on ISKCON’s mission to bring others to Krishna, and to see how we can optimize the festival to that end. Specifically, how we can better give books, prasadam and Hari Nama to the people of London.”