Gaura Purnima festival is the divine appearance day of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu who is Krishna himself. The Supreme Lord Sri Krishna appeared as Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu to establish Sankirtana (chanting of the Holy Names) – the Yuga Dharma for this age of Kali and distribute Krishna prema to conditioned souls. He appeared on Phalguni Purnima, the full moon day in the month of Phalguna, (Feb-March) in the year 1486 AD at Sridham Mayapura as the son of Sri Jagannath Mishra and Srimati Sachidevi. He is also known as Nimai since he was born under a Nimba (neem) tree in the courtyard of His paternal house. For his golden complexion he is also famously known as Gauranga. He spent His life spreading the teachings of the Srimad Bhagavat Purana promoting the spiritual practice of chanting Krishna’s holy name. The day is of great significance for Gaudiya Vaishnav devotees and a major festival is held on this day to glorify & receive blessings of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.
At Hare Krishna Mandir, the celebration begins in the morning. Temple is decorated with flowers & festoons. Deities of Sri Sri Gaur Nitai, Jagganath Baladev Subhadra and Sri Sri Radha Shyamsundar are decorated with new dress and dazzling jewelries.
In evening the Deities of Sri Sri Nitai Gauranga (Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and Lord Nityananda) receive a grand abhisheka. Their Lordships are first bathed with panchamrita and then with panchagavya followed by various fruit juices. Devotees chant prayers from the Brahma-samhita, glorifying the Lord. A grand arati is performed to the accompaniment of the Gaura Arati song composed by Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura. After the arati, the Deities are bathed with sanctified water from 108 kalashas while the devotees chant the Purusha Sukta prayers. Their Lordships then receive pushpa vrishti (showering of flowers) and a special offering of 56 dishes (chappan bhog).
After that the Deities are taken out in a procession in a pallakki bedecked with flowers. Devotees perform maha sankirtana sing & dance to please the Supreme Lord. As everyone joins in the sankirtana, the Hare Krishna maha mantra resounds in every corner of the temple.After Pallaki the Deities are put to rest with shayana arati and with this the program concludes with devotees & visitors relishing dinner mahaprasad.
On Gaura Punima, devotees fast till moonrise and break their fast by taking anukalpa feast (made from non-grains). On the following day, they offer a special feast to the Lord which is called Jagannath Mishra Feast, named after Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s father, who arranged a grand feast to celebrate the birth of his son.
