Author : Srimati Vrindavanlila d.d. (Dr. Vrinda Baxi) E-Mail : vrindavanlila.brs@gmail.com Date Produced : February, 2016 Editor : Sriman Rasamandal das Serial No. : 14 of 54

2. Sri Govind Gau Gram
Prachar Yatra
(IDVM-India Pledge to Visit 108 Villages)
Author : Srimati Vrindavanlila d.d. (Dr. Vrinda Baxi)
E-Mail : vrindavanlila.brs@gmail.com
Date Produced : February, 2016
Editor : Sriman Rasamandal das
Serial No. : 14 of 54

3. By Vrndavanlila Devi Dasi (Dr. Vrinda Baxi)

4. THE REAL India lies in the 7,00,000 villages. If Indian civilization is to make its full
contribution to the building up of a stable world order, it is this vast mass of humanity
that has….to be made to live again.
***
I would say that if the village perishes India will perish too. India will be no more India.
Her own mission in the world will get lost. The revival of the village is possible only when
it is no more exploited. Industrialization on a mass scale will necessarily lead to passive
or active exploitation of the villagers as the problems of competition and marketing come
in. Therefore we have to concentrate on the village being self-contained, manufacturing
mainly for use.
***
The future of India lies in its villages.
- M.K. Gandhi (Father of the Nation)

5. The simple living and high thinking which revolved around land, cows and Krsna is slowly
disappearing.
• Village life is exemplified by the Supreme Lord Himself.
• The simple village life of a devotee is exemplified by His most exalted devotees – the
cowherd girls of Vrindavan or gopis. Those simple gopis give the highest philosophy of
Krsna Consciousness. They are epitome of perfection in bhakti.
Unfortunately that model is slowly disappearing…

6. • Faulty notion of economic progress
• Loss of traditional occupations
• Loss of indigenous breed of cows
• Farming hit by usage of fertilizers, of mechanisation, of GM
/ HYV Seeds, of pesticides, green revolution, misplaced
objectives of farming (mono-cropping and cash cropping)
• Discouragement to village technologies
• Urbanisation of villages in the name of progress
• Infiltration of cash money in the village fabric

7. • Disappearance of cows (backbone of any human
society), especially the desi cows
• Depletion of soil fertility (Exploitation of Mother Earth)
• Recession of water level
• Sowing the seeds of greed, consumerism, spiritual
hollowness in the farmers through t.v, internet etc
• Breakdown of local governance

8. • Reduced the farmers or the suppliers of food to the world
to a mere labourer, dependent on the mercy doled out by
others
• Rising incidents of suicide in the farmers
• Divested of both go-dhan and bhumi-dhan
• Loss of spiritual prosperity
… and many more nightmarish consequences have ultimately
led to mass exodus of villgers to cities and thus,
GRADUAL DEATH OF VILLAGES IN INDIA

9. No wonder, Srila Prabhupada, the Founder-Acarya of ISKCON desired
to focus on villages, the REAL India.
Prabhupada:... I wantto preach little inthe village. Forthatpurpose inthe big bus likethat, we
shall gowith ourtents, andwecampinaplace where there iswater,andbegin ourpreaching.And
Hindi book weare getting.Inthiswaylet metryinIndia, inthevillage, not inthe city.
…Hamsaduta:For usthere isnoproblem Prabhupäda, but itmaybedifficult foryour Divine
Grace.
Prabhupada:No, whatis difficult? (laughter)ButIwant todosomethingforIndiainthe
village...
[Room Conversation, October 31, 1976, Vrndavana Dhama]

11. Indian villages which:
• Are viewed as blots on the face of modern industrialized India
• Are in state of utter neglect & exposed to urban distortions
• Are exploited to cater to the needs of Urban India
envisions to
offer holistic care to all by addressing the
material, emotional, social, and spiritual needs of
villagers through its multi-pronged approach.

12. IDVM-India’s Sri Govind Gau Gram Prachar Yatra is an attempt to
restore the glory of cows and villages by:
Reviving their cow protection culture
Reviving their dying fields by encouraging them to follow the
traditional methods of farming, village technology, simple lifestyle …
Instilling new confidence & encouraging them to be localized
Reversing the trend of migration from the villages to cities
SAVE OUR COWS – SAVE OUR VILLAGES

17. - Conviction & determination to fulfill acarya’s desire
- Surrender to the Lotus feet of Sri Guru & Gauranga
- Detachment to comforts & luxuries
- Unassuming, readiness to face any kind of difficulty
- Adaptability to new place, people, situation…
- Willingness to take austerities
- Good sadhna

18. - No place to retire at night or day time (many
times under the shade of tree in chilly nights…)
- No water, bathroom or toilet facility
- One devotee bitten by scorpion in the wee hours
and no medical assistance was available
- Breakdown of vehicle at a deserted place
- And many many more…

24. “Yatra works at the grassroot level of cow protection. No cow protection can take place in goshala,
cities or general masses. The most effective one is that which targets the person who actually
deals with the cows – the farmers, the villagers. We are targetting them. Further, we are not
talking about spirituality in vacuum. We take care of their material needs too. We try to cure
the problem from its roots. What our Yatra is offering is a complete package. That is its beauty
and unique point.”
- HG Jananivas Das

25. This Yatra is unique as we simply don’t talk about the villagers’ problems but also offer them
solutions; spiritual solutions to their practical day to day material or any kind of
problems. It is a very personalised approach. It is just not about go-raksha it is also about
the rakshaof their lives, their farms, food, culture, traditional technologies… as everything
is inter-related.
When it comes to what we get, I personally find it very purifying, spiritually invigorating
which also makes a person very detachedand spiritually focused. -HGGourGopal das

26. “Earlier we were in the comfort zone of house, but in this yatra we were all the time
dependent on the Lord. We were travelling to unknown villages. Because of the
changes in the style of farming, famers are frustrated and have taken to bad things
and their responses were varied. At one place we got an ovating welcome, while in
other they were indifferent. However, the Yatra devotees were doing their duty
verysincerely.”
-HGRasamandalDas

27. With the blessings of Vaishnavas, under the aegis of
HH Bhakti Raghava Swami, Minister, IDVM-India, Sri
Govind Gau Gram Prachar Yatra was launched on
October 25, 2015 at ISKCON Hyderabad.
HG Basu Ghosh prabhu, HG Vedanta Caitanya
prabhu, HG Anandmaya prabhu and Sriman
Sanskritananda Acarya were a few of the dignitaries
present to flag off the Yatra bus.

28. Initially, the Yatra was planned to intensively traverse the two
states of Andhra and Telangana as the core Yatra team
belongs to this part of India.
• The first phase planned to cover Andhra belt.
• Second phase comprised villages in the Nalagonda district.
• Third phase was relatively nearer to Hyderabad in Telangana
Then winter break, but the divine plan took them beyond &
more
• Fourth phase of coastal Andhra got added.
• Fifth phase of Maharashtra-Madhya Pradesh also happened.

31. • Generally includes gram-sankirtan with/
without Lord Jagannath’s chariot
• Repeated announcements of the evening
program along with its highlights
• Invitation to assemble at the specified venue
for the evening program
Note: Complete program is conducted in the local language of the area

32. • Beginning the program with go-puja
• Invoking the blessings of Sri Caitanya
Mahaprabhu, who wanted the Holy Name to
reach every town and village and also bringing
in the right humble attitude in the Yatra
devotees, by reciting Shikshashtakam

36. • Lecture, video on the importance of chanting
the Holy Name and question-answer session
• Lecture, video on the evils of modern farming
and its alternatives & question-answer session
• Lecture and video on cow-protection and go-
seva & question-answer session

37. Villagers hearing & watching the documentary movie with great interest

38. Lecture and video on the importance of
chanting the Holy Name, on the evils of
modern farming and its alternatives, and
on cow-protection/go-seva
Villagers taking vow to protect cows and
adopt sustainable farming methods
Note: Lecture and video are in the local language of the area

39. Free distribution of the:
• Holy Name
• Prasadam
• Methods of sustainable
living with Bhu-devi &
Gomata
• Dignity to villages
• Transcendental literature

40. Sowing the seeds of bhakti, dignity and conviction
in the hearts of villagers
Follow-up program through:
* Samskara Patra
* Nama Hatta Sangha
* Krsi-Go Raksha Sangha
Concluding to begin afresh at a new village…

41. 1st villager : Since 40 yrs many people have come to our village in
the name of religion and expected so many things in return of
their activities. But it is only you people who have come to us
to GIVE us something very precious, directly related to
farmers, soil, cows and food without asking anything in
return.
2nd Villager: Your Yatra has given hope to depressed farmers.
3rd Villager: Now we can see some bright future for agriculture.
… and many more

43. Post the program, without exception, every village
expressed the desire of having a permanent connect
with the Yatra devotees and more such programs.
This was facilitated through registering their villages:
Nama Hatta Sanga: It would allow them to receive
basic spiritual training- chanting & following the four
rules and regulations.
Krsi Gau Raksha Sanga: It is registration under the
IDVM-India. It’s wider in scope and allows both the
varnasrama and spiritual training.

44. In a period of just about 60 days,
* Took ISKCON to remote villages
* Covered 67 villages
* Reached out to 13,000+ villagers
* More than 13,000 villagers pledged to go-
raksha and take spiritual training
* Distributed prasadam to 15,000+ villagers
* Distributed 3,000+ books
* Distributed Harinam to countless souls… 
Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare
Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare

45. “IDVM-India is making real history through
this most crucial grassroot village program
and setting the stage for colossal changes
and innovations as we enter ISKCON’s
GOLDEN JUBILEE Era, an Era of continued
bold initiatives and highly effective
outreach touching the hearts and lives of
thousands of crying souls.”
- HH RP Bhakti Raghava Swami, Minister,
IDVM-India

47. For further information:
Please visit www.iskconvarnasrama.com
& www.srisurabhi.org

48. Srimati Vrindavanlila d.d. (Dr. Vrinda Baxi)

49. About the Author
• Name in full Srimati Vrindavanlila d.d. (Dr. Vrinda Baxi)
• Age and Gender 44, Female
• Country/State of Origin India, Uttar Pradesh (Ayodhya)
• Highest Degree and Year Ph.D in English 1998
• Educational Institution Panjab University
• Professional Work Writer/Editor
(16+ years of industrial experience)
• Affiliation with ISKCON Since 2000
• Present Service Sr. Editor in Varnasrama Book Trust (VBT)
Member of Sustainable Vaisnava
Communities (SVC)

50. “Om Surabhyai namah”
Thank you
and
All the best