Where to find people who love Deity worship?

[Laddu1]

Hello everyone! I hope this is ok to post here.

I am relatively new here. Last year I officially left Iskcon after 6 years (although 3 out of those years I had already not been going to the temple but still associated myself with iskcon).

From everything that I had learned to practice there, deity worship is pretty much the only thing that stayed, aka sewing for Deities, making decorations, taking them on walks etc.

I see that in India there are many people posting on fb or yt about (Krishna) bhakti and their activities with their deities and I would love to find more friends with whom I could discuss this with. Someone who will not give me a strange look when I say that I just sewed a nappy for Laddu gopal.

I would be very grateful for some input or tips
p.s. I am in Europe if that matters.

Stay safe everyone!

 

[Vinayaka]

Hello everyone! I hope this is ok to post here.

I am relatively new here. Last year I officially left Iskcon after 6 years (although 3 out of those years I had already not been going to the temple but still associated myself with iskcon).

From everything that I had learned to practice there, deity worship is pretty much the only thing that stayed, aka sewing for Deities, making decorations, taking them on walks etc.

I see that in India there are many people posting on fb or yt about (Krishna) bhakti and their activities with their deities and I would love to find more friends with whom I could discuss this with. Someone who will not give me a strange look when I say that I just sewed a nappy for Laddu gopal.

I would be very grateful for some input or tips
p.s. I am in Europe if that matters.

Stay safe everyone!

Saiva bhaktar here. Not sure how similar our bhakti would be, but I do love my deity worship, yes.

 

[JustGeorge]

It can be hard, when you feel some sense of Bhakti(for any deity) and no one knows what the heck you're talking about, or why you care.

I often share things like that here on the forums, with certain crowds. If it helps, feel free to use the Hinduism DIR to share your experiences. We will all be happy to hear of them, and perhaps you'll even inspire some of us.

 

[Valjean]

Welcome to RF, Laddu.
Deity worship? Right here on RF is a pretty good place to find them, though there are more Abrahamic worshipers than Hindu bhaktis.

 

[Laddu1]

@Vinayaka @Valjean @JustGeorge thank you all so much for your replies! I wasn't expecting any, so it's nice to hear to this type of content is welcome here

 

[Valjean]

@Vinayaka @Valjean @JustGeorge thank you all so much for your replies! I wasn't expecting any, so it's nice to hear to this type of content is welcome here

It's a pretty active forum.

 

[Vinayaka]

@Vinayaka @Valjean @JustGeorge thank you all so much for your replies! I wasn't expecting any, so it's nice to hear to this type of content is welcome here

More than welcome from my POV. The general stuff here is fairly philosophical, and for a bhaktar, that gets tedious. That said, there isn't as much to discuss about bhakti. Not that much to debate.

What's your favorite colour to dress you deities in? (I'm M 68 ... my spouse, affectionately referred to as Boss on here, does all our home shrine clothing, other than shawls, which I select from her stockpile on a shelf nearby.)

 

[ameyAtmA]

Laddu1

Welcome. So pleased to hear that you have been sewing clothes for my Baby. (Bal KRshNa , Laddu GopAL.) who grew out of size 2 but wears a few oversized sz 4 dresses and looks cute in them.
He sports mukuts half His size and they tilt to the side at times.

We don't discuss Laddu (Baby KRshNa) on RF - nazar lag jAyegi.

What tips are you looking for in particular?

 

[ameyAtmA]

Mere Banke Bihari Laal tu itnA nA kariyo shringAr, nazar tohe lag jayegi

 

[Aupmanyav]

.. and I would love to find more friends with whom I could discuss this with. Someone who will not give me a strange look when I say that I just sewed a nappy for Laddu gopal.

To dress Laddoo Gopala with a nappy is the first item in my wife's worship.

 

[The Crimson Universe]

I am relatively new here. Last year I officially left Iskcon after 6 years (although 3 out of those years I had already not been going to the temple but still associated myself with iskcon).

Welcome to RF. There is one member here who's into Krishna bhakti. She goes by the name Viraja. Perhaps she can help you with things you're looking for. May i know what made you leave Iskcon?

 

[Viraja]

Welcome to RF. There is one member here who's into Krishna bhakti. She goes by the name Viraja. Perhaps she can help you with things you're looking for. May i know what made you leave Iskcon?

I hope I am not too boastful of my faith in Lord Krishna. That said, I truly appreciate you having paid attention to my thoughts here, Greg.

To Laddu,

Welcome to RF. Like Greg, I too am interested in knowing why you left ISKCON. I call myself a follower of the faith, even though I am officially connected to the organization in any way.

I love clothing baby Krishna. If you are a professional designer of Krishna clothes, may be you can display your work perhaps? I love to watch youtube videos where they do shringar of baby Krishna and also the grown-up Krishna with beautiful attire and clothes.

 

[Laddu1]

@ameyAtmA Yes!

@Aupmanyav That is so lovely to hear!

@Greg Levenski @Viraja Hello you guys! Jay Jagannath! Thank you for youre responses. Innitially I stopped going to the temple because of anxiety after gaining a lot of weight (I know, ironic, with the whole notion of "we are not this body" preaching). I was still following the principles but stopped chanting after a year because I felt I would rather DO stuff to further cultivate bhakti rather than do japa which had always been my least favourite thing. After more years and meeting new people, non devotees, I learned so much from them and realized how stuck up I became and that I had developed a superiority complex while in iskcon due to the constant preaching of "we(hare krishnas) are the highest religion" etc. You know the drill. I still distinguished between "devotees" and "karmis", but started to hate that I did this and wanted to see everyone as equal.

Having had a psychosis last year, that literally brought me back to reality, made me realize that I had long time moved away from iskcon or what they preach. So I decided to officially leave. Nobody there was waiting for me anyway after all those 3-4 years haha, they all thought I "fell back into maya" anyway. Whatever.
I still watch/follow some iskcon devotees content but don't listen too deeply when they talk about how a woman should be submissive or that you can only reach God through a guru etc. I don't agree with this. Nor do I follow the regulative principles anymore. Back in my "hayday" I was following everything very strictly, getting up at 3:30am to have a morning programm like they have in iskcon at home, chant 16 rounds daily, do puja, cook, study Prabhupadas book, while studying at uni, working out and commuting to another city for the temple programm. It was a very intense period in my life but I am very glad where I am now, having found my own opinion and not following blindly.

What I do enjoy still is how creative devotees, especially in my motherland Russia, are and what kind of decorations and ornaments etc. they make for God. I love this. Even before my Hare Krishna days this has been something that I thoroughly enjoyed, especially making miniature things out of clay or so. And that is why I love everything that has to do with deities now because I can make miniature things again.

Some photos of my deities below, Laddu gopal and Jagannath,Baladev, Subhadra maharani (who have their first birthday today). Edit: I made all of Jagannath, Baladev's and Subhadra's clothes myself, Laddu gopals dress and jewelry is not made by me (yet).

 

[Viraja]

Lovely decorations, Laddu1! ^^

Well, I have few thoughts for you!

Please do not see this as advice as nobody likes them (advice) but rather as my own thoughts.

Any organization operates under the motive that its agenda is the best. So may be ISKCON can be forgiven for advocating Krishna supremacy. As such, bhakti marga ranks highest among spiritual aspirants because it is easy than other pathways of Karma, rajayoga and gnanayoga. Krishna can be attained only through prema or bhakti and hence the path that promotes this thinks it is the highest.

You might ask why I'm emphasizing ISKCON to you, since you have left it altogether. Well, mainly for its satsang, solid guru parampara or framework of gurus, being present worldwide, aarti and other festivals at ISKCON temples, etc. It offers you a backbone, in my opinion. Something to hold on to, especially for newcomers until their faith gets solidified.

But besides that, the 16 rounds of japa is a guideline, but me being a follower of ISKCON, am not into doing the 16 rounds either! The reason they emphasize 16 rounds is that 'we get him only by his own mercy'. Which means, we sincerely pray and do japa asking for more love which makes this arduous process enjoyable and he grants it upon continued effort, is the motto.

I only do 4 or 5 rounds of japa at the max, and skip this too on many occasions. I see my prema slowly increasing.

So that is all I have to offer! Please do not see this as advice, I repeat again, as someone who is not actually in ISKCON myself, just shared a few thoughts that occurred to me upon reading your elaborate reply, and just sharing those thoughts in a friendly manner.

Good wishes to you and welcome again.

 

[Laddu1]

@Viraja Thank you very much for your reply No worries, I appreciate your reply and words. I do miss satsang and kirtan and deity worship with others and oftentimes think about wether or not I should go there just for the festivities. But then I am reminded that I will be judged there for "engaging in karmi lifestyle" and not being vegetarian and rejecting their gurus including Prabhupada. I appreciate these personalities a lot but there are also many things they preach which are very extremist (e.g. Prabhupada saying how he would instantly kill all atheists if he could). These things add to the cult aspect, making devotees fanatics. I see this as dangerous. Maybe in a few years I would dare to step foot in my local iskcon temple again, but for now no. I would like to, once covid ends eventually, travel and visit different iskcon. I find it easier to be there when people don't know me, I feel more free.

Very glad to hear that chanting is helping you and you feel prema increasing! Then it is absolutely the right thing for you. You are not from Europe by any chance?

 

[Viraja]

@Viraja Thank you very much for your reply No worries, I appreciate your reply and words. I do miss satsang and kirtan and deity worship with others and oftentimes think about wether or not I should go there just for the festivities. But then I am reminded that I will be judged there for "engaging in karmi lifestyle" and not being vegetarian and rejecting their gurus including Prabhupada. I appreciate these personalities a lot but there are also many things they preach which are very extremist (e.g. Prabhupada saying how he would instantly kill all atheists if he could). These things add to the cult aspect, making devotees fanatics. I see this as dangerous. Maybe in a few years I would dare to step foot in my local iskcon temple again, but for now no. I would like to, once covid ends eventually, travel and visit different iskcon. I find it easier to be there when people don't know me, I feel more free.

Very glad to hear that chanting is helping you and you feel prema increasing! Then it is absolutely the right thing for you. You are not from Europe by any chance?

@Laddu1, I apologize for the delay as last two days I was very busy.

No, I'm actually Indian.

There is no harm, I respect your feelings, not everything works out the same way for everyone. I am not actually part of ISKCON, and hence I have no comments to add further.

I do not chant 16 rounds, but I do other things, like abhishekam, listening routinely to ISKCON guru HH Indradyumna Swami Maharaja's Vrindavan lectures, and also do some small amount of chanting.

I would recommend you to explore and come upon a devotional program to follow each day that is simple, appealing and vibes with your feelings for Lord Jagannath/Krishna. Clothing them is a fantastic idea and may be you can also make a flower garland each day for the lord? And perhaps make something simple to offer as Naivedya too. Just some humble suggestions.

Devotion comes from serving the servants of the Lord they say. Also some do cleaning of his temple, and arranging things for the lord. So as said already, I kindly request you to explore things you can offer.

Good wishes to you and pranam.

 

[Laddu1]

@Viraja Thank you very much for your replies! No worries about the delays, I also can't reply immediately.

Yes a daily act of service is something I would like to have again in the future. I have very little routine at the moment and anything that has a routine to it helps me mentally. So it's something I would like to achieve in the future.

Wishing you all the best in your endeavours too!)

 

[ameyAtmA]

I would be very grateful for some input or tips

Yes a daily act of service is something I would like to have again in the future. I have very little routine at the moment and anything that has a routine to it helps me mentally. So it's something I would like to achieve in the future

Dear Laddu1

What is most important is one’s personal relationship with Krishna. SAdhanA is relatively external and for discipline and training the mind, yes, but life is in the realm of mAyA and not having time for external sAdhanA should have nothing to do with one’s relationship with Krishna. Do you agree?

When you are not in your puja room, is Krishna not with you? Does your love for Laddu decrease or do you forget Him just because you are elsewhere or in the world outside?

Would you not want to take your Laddu to work / school one day? [I don't mean the actual physical vigraha ] You will see that not having time for external sAdhanA will not be a concern, and the time will be made for you – just as a cloud shifts to reveal the Sun.

Take Laddu in daily commutes, buses, trains, airplanes, for walks and on treks. Pack dal rice and make halwas and laddus and ras-malais in the air – without gaining calories, and flowers without picking any.

There is so much one can do in an hour’s daily commute [*If you are driving and this is not second nature to you then not recommended.]

Do you have a lullaby? VishNu SahasranAma is my lullaby. What is yours?

Depending on the time and life situation, one person may have time for 64 or 70 rounds of mantra japa , another for 3 hours of dhyAna, a third may get a slot for BhAgavat pArAyaN (read Bhagavat purAN from start to finish) , a fourth may be in the phase or stage of studying the scriptures - Bhagavad Geeta, upanishads, ... and a fifth may be merely engrossed in Krishna Leela at a point and all of this can change for the same person at some other point. Life changes, sAdhanA changes, adhikAr changes , and what is the sweet constant in all of this?
Association of Krishna - that He is willing to give but people are too busy to take.

 

[Laddu1]

@ameyAtmA Thank you very much for your reply! I agree very much! I absolutely love imagining ways how I can worship Laddu gopal/Jagannath. I get inspired and it becomes a creative process for me. So I can very much relate to what you say "bringing Laddu gopal on bus, train, commute, offering flowers without picking any". Most of my sadhana happens in my mind and I derive great joy from it.

You asked about a lullaby, I don't really have one, but there are many kirtans and bhajans that I love with all my heart during my iskcon days, and still now. One is parama karuna by this ukrainian devotee Shishtakrit prabhu.

Maybe @Viraja would find joy in this one too?

 

[Viraja]

One is parama karuna by this ukrainian devotee Shishtakrit prabhu. [MEDIA=youtube]-QpJvb4U2z0[/MEDIA]
Maybe [USER=42246]@Viraja would find joy in this one too? [/USER]

^That was enjoyable, Laddu1.

I have one for you, a song I'm totally passionate about.

[MEDIA=youtube]nbgkRu3rUiE[/MEDIA]