Hare Krishna. Om Sri Surabhyai Namaha. All glories to Srila Prabhupada.
On the first day of Damodara Masa, 25th October 2018, “LagudaPratipat” festival of cattle was celebrated at Chilkur, Telangana. The festival was jointly organized by ISKCON Daiva Varnasrama Ministry- India (IDVM-India), Chilkur Balaji Temple, The Art of Living, Bharatheeyam, SAVE and a few other organizations.
“LagudaPratipat” festival of cattle is celebrated all over India from ancient times. The significance of this festival is to highlight the relationship and dependency directly or indirectly between bulls, cows, and human beings. This unique festival is celebrated to show that we honour them for our sustenance through farming and seeking their blessings for supporting our livelihood. The beautifully decorated bulls and cows were taken in a procession through the roads of the village for creating auspiciousness and for protecting the whole village and its residents. This is irrespective of caste or creed reflecting a higher consciousness.
The program started at 11.00 am with Gau puja led by Sri Soundar Rajan, Priest and trust member of Chilkur Balaji temple. The cows and bulls were very elegantly decorated for the occasion. The procession started with Harinama sankirtan led by ISKCON devotees comprising Gour Gopal prabhu, Rajaram prabhu, Mayapur Sashimataji, Jananivasprabhu, Keshav Krishna prabhu, Vishnu Swami prabhu, Rasamandala prabhu, Vasudama prabhu, Bhakta Kautilya and Bhakta Karthik. The procession went through the winding country roads laced by orchards and lush green paddy fields. The entire journey was a distance of 2.5 Kms. Many people joined en-route while many others simply witnessed the pageant reminding of the erstwhile culture. This festival generally coincides with Dussehra celebrations in which decorated bullock carts also participate in the pageant.
The procession reached the temple with a few more bulls joining it and was received with the recitation of Vedic hymns. The whole procession went around the temple periphery amidst the Vedic hymns. All along, the bulls co-operated very nicely, probably enjoying the festivity and attention.
The temple priests performed arati to the bulls in the temple precincts, followed by a ten-minute pravachan given by Sri Soundar Rajan on the significance of the festival. He prayed to the Lord that this festival goes on continuously for a long time to come and also spreads to many more villages. He administrated an oath to all present to save this culture, protect cows and for adopting natural farming and a simple living.
Various media channels covered the whole event and HG Rajaram prabhu addressed the media about the significance of this festival and its culture. He also informed the participants about the OM Sri Surabhi Campaign, its objectives of protection and revival of the cow culture for global auspiciousness.
In the end, Bhakta Kautilya, organizer of the event, appreciated the participation of various organizations and wished that this festival was observed every year with more enthusiastic participation.
Hare Krishna. All Glories to Srila Prabhupada.
Report by Vasudama Dasa
