ISKCON Delhi celebrated its first ever Boat Festival of Sri Radha Parathsarathi at its ‘Glory of India’ premises on Saturday April 3.

The festival, which coincided with the Indian Regional Governing Board meetings, saw several

temple presidents and 14 sannyasis attend, including Gopal Krishna Swami, Radhanath Swami, Bhakti Charu Swami and Loknath Swami.

The festivities began with the Deities being taken on an artistic palanquin around the temple grounds, accompanied by hundreds of devotees performing the congregational chanting of the holy names of the Lord.

The procession ended at the foot steps of the Kaliya Krishna Pond, the site for the boat festival. Multitudes of flower petals had been arrayed on the water, forming decorative designs., and the banks looked equally appealing decorated with balloons and flower garlands.

“The artists for decorating the pond were specially brought in from Vrindavan. We used 6 different kinds of flowers weighing nearly 200 lbs” said Vrindavan Vinod Dasa, Manager for ISKCON Delhi.

Prior to the Deities being taken onto the boat, Radhanath Swami performed a ceremonial. The deities were then taken on to the elegant boat and were given an initial push by Gopal Krishna Swami.

With Lokanath Swami’s kirtan roaring in the background, the divine couple went around the pond, all the while being showered with flower petals by more than a thousand devotees. As the kirtan reached its peak, several devotees even plunged into the water to tag along.

As the festival neared its end, the deities were taken back to the altar and were again given a ceremonial worship. The pond was then opened to the public, and several devotees were seen collecting remnants of the water left in the pond.

The event ended with a trademark feast of sumptuous sanctified food.

“This is just the beginning, we are planning to hold this kind of festival every 3 months. You can expect the next one to be even bigger” added Vrindavan Vinod Dasa.