By Ramanuja das
Ram Ghat on the banks of Mandakini Ganga, the caves of Gupt Godavari, the ever pleasing Kamad-giri or the sacred mountain on which Lord Ramachandra set up His residence - which is considered to be as good as Giriraj Govardhan in Vrindavan and many other pastime places of Lord Rama decorate Chitrakoot as beautiful ornaments which have attracted the minds of saintly personalities since time immemorial. Many ashrams would very happily and hospitably welcome the devotees and gladly agree to allow them to take prasadam which they provide free of cost to the sadhus every day. Lecture halls for the six days program as well as accommodation for the devotees were arranged at the Udyamita campus. Seminars on importance of devotee association, simple yet clear lectures by Subhag Swami, tips by Niranjan prabhu, fired up kirtans, chanting at train station and of course dramas depicting pastimes of lord Ramachandra enlivened the devotees. His Holiness Subhag Swami explained the meaning of go to dhama only for sightseeing….this is meant for those who don’t know the real purose of visiting holy places. The dhama is accepted to be holy because the Supreme Lord or His devotees enacted pastimes there and more because advanced devotees reside in these places and constantly speak about the lords pastimes. It is instructed that one visit the holy places because there one can avail the opportunity to hear Krishna katha from self-realized souls and enrich their Krishna consciousness.”