(Short Summary)
These are challenging times for us with Covid-19 on the forefront of everyone’s minds, we were glad to have had the opportunity to host the Bhagwad Saptha from Sunday 28th June to Saturday 4th July 2020 in memory of my father, Khodidasbhai Dhamecha, my uncle Jayanti kaka and my niece, Visha Bharti, recited by Aacharya Shri Palkeshbhai Trivedi. The live broadcast of the Bhagwad Saptha on Aastha and Jalaram TV allowed our friends and family to learn and enjoy, and hopefully has been a welcome distraction from lockdown.
The Shrimad Bhagwad Saptha held at Jalaram Mandir, Greenford, was memorable for our family. We previously held a big Bhagwad Saptha in 2013 and thoroughly enjoyed hosting a large number of attendees daily, however this one was special as we had the opportunity to sit and listen,
uninterrupted every day.
The learnings from the Bhagwad Saptha are endless, there’s always so much to learn and Aacharya
Shri Palkeshbhai Trivedi did a wonderful job of explaining the teachings in a simple and easy to
understand way. The younger members of our family especially felt engaged and were keen to come
daily to listen to Aacharya Shri Palkeshbhai – this is important for me, as I strongly believe we need
to ensure our culture and values are passed down to future generations.
The daily recitals of the Bhagwad Saptha commenced with Aashirvaads from leading Maharajshree’s and spiritual leaders from India. These included:
(1) Param Pujya Vrajrajbawa, Baroda, (2) Param Pujya Dwarkeshbawa, Baroda, (3) Param Pujya Bapushree, Jamnagar, (4) Param Pujya Radharaman Swami, Rajkot, (5) Param Pujya Vallabbawa, Jamnagar, (6) Param Pujya Dwarkeshbawa, Bombay, (7) Param Pujya Sahebji.
Dhamecha Family is immensely grateful to the Board of Trustees of Jalaram Mandir for
allowing the family to hold the Bhagwad Saptha from the Mandir. In particular, the family is indebted to Aacharya Shri Palkeshbhai Trivedi for reciting the Bhagwad Saptha in simple, understandable Gujarati, excellent content and delivery which made the past week
extremely memorable for the family.
Closing speech
Isn’t it amazing, today is the final day of the saptha. What a great seven days of absolute bliss and peace, as we’ve listened to the recital of Shrimad Bhagwad Saptha by Pujya Aacharya Shri
Palkeshbhai Trivedi. The lockdown period has been a challenging time for most of us. It’s strange how time flies, we have thoroughly enjoyed every minute of the past week. But this has only been possible because of the excellent recital by Pujya Aacharya Shri Palkeshbhai.
No matter how many times we listen to the Bhagwad Saptha there’s always so much to learn. Palkeshbhai, your simple, understandable Guajarati, excellent content and delivery have made the past seven days so memorable for all of us, especially the youngsters. This will ensure that our culture and values can be enhanced and passed down to future generations. Palkeshbhai, this week’s Bhagwad Saptha felt like you were Sukhderji maraj and we were listening like Parikshit raja – completely personal. I am not sure this will ever be possible in our lifetime again.
The particular highlights of the week for me were: - Seeing different members of the family, especially the youngsters, sitting and listening to the Bhagwad Saptha daily - Taking part in Narsinh Avtar with my cousins Meena, Amit and his family - Celebrating Nand Utsuv with my kaki, Prabha Kaki and her family, and my cousin Rupen and his family - My cousin Sushma, my nephew Sai, and my family taking part in the Govurdhan Puja - Celebrating the jaan arrival in Rukmini Viva with my mother, Lalitaben, my kaka, Shanti Kaka and his family … And a special mention to my cousin Manish for wearing a jubo, a rare feat for him! - And finally the whole family taking part, and enjoying themselves, during the Raas Leela accompanied by the wonderful music performed by Robin Christian and Shri Gadhvi
The daily morning pujas, with detailed explanations from Vishalbhai and Keyurbhai, followed by the recital of the Bhagwad Saptha in the afternoon, has been our routine for the past week and I have been really enjoying this lifestyle with complete peace and tranquillity.
However from Monday it’s back to our old routine. I think it will be a shock to our system. Thank you all for joining us for a memorable week as we remember my late father, Khodidasbhai, my kaka, Jayanti kaka and my niece, Visha Bharti. I’ll now pass over to my son, Anand, who will say a few thank you on behalf of the Dhamecha Parivar.
Jai Shree Krishna
