The holiest month of Kartik or Damodar is from October 29th -November 26th this year. It is a great opportunity, for new and seasoned bhakti practitioners alike, to dive a little deeper into their spiritual practices. As per Vedic texts, any devotional activity done during this month has its benefits multiplied a thousand-fold.
Lord Krishna is known for His sweet childhood pastimes and it is in this month that He performed many amazing feats- from liberating ghoulish demons to allowing Himself to be roped tightly by His mother, Yashoda. Several festivals also fall within this auspicious month including Diwali on November 12th and Govardhan Puja on November 16th.
During this month we recite special prayers known as the Damodarastakam. The lyrics and English translation of the Damodarastakam prayers can be found HERE.
Traditionally lamps are offered while singing these prayers; however, for safety precautions lamps will only be offered at the Temple daily at 7am. Devotees are encouraged to take up this practice in their homes as well. The procedure for offering lamps is available in the diagram below. You can also join the daily virtual sanga from 6pm-6:30pm which will include the Damodarastakam prayers as well as readings from sacred texts. Additionally, there will be morning japa sessions; see the poster below for more info.
