In observance of the 524th anniversary of Lord Chaitanya’s advent, devotees in Texas organized a chanting party on Saturday, Feb 27 at the Constitution Circle near the entrance to the Houston Zoo. Giriraja Swami joined about 25 local devotees to sing the holy names, sell books and dance in joy, waving colorful banners decorated with the Maha Mantra or depictions of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu with His associates.

The attendees remembered Srila Prabhupada’s inspiration from his guru that “spiritual books are the ‘Brhat Mrdanga’ (the big mrdanga) because like a drum which can be heard from a long distance, simply a few words can have a tremendous effect on millions of people if they are propagated widely.”

Even children were passing out free sweets and fliers explaining the significance of the holy names and Gaura Purnima.

The kirtan lasted for two and half hours, reaching a crescendo when Giriraja Swami arrived on the scene, dancing with the devotees and giving them renewed energy.

By the end of the day, the devotees had distributed over 100 books, many of them in Spanish.