Shri
Narendra Kumar Sinha, Secretary, Ministry of Culture released a Commemorative
Non-Circulation Coin of ₹500 and a Circulation Coin of ₹10 as part
of year-long celebrations of commemoration of “500th Anniversary
of Shri Krishna Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s Coming to Vrindavan” here today.
Shri
Krishna Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, a famous Hindi Saint and social reformer was a
distinguished promoter for the Vaishnava School of Bhakti Yoga. The Bhakti
movement initiated by him strove to eradicate the evils of caste and feudal
systems of medieval India. Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu propagated the worship of
Shri Krishna and popularized the chanting of “Hare Krishna Mantra” to all
without any discrimination.
In
the year 1515, Chaitanya Mahaprabhu visited Vrindavan, with the objective of
locating the lost holy places associated with Lord Krishna's transcendent
pastimes. It is believed that through his intuitive powers, Sri Chaitanya
Mahaprabhu was able to locate all the places associated with Lord Sri Krishna
and restore the pristine purity of the religious practices of the yore.
Government
of India is commemorating the 500th anniversary of Shri Krishna
Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s Coming to Vrindavan by organizing various programmes and
Exhibitions on Shri Krishna Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s life and teachings in
association with Vrindavan Research Institute and ISKCON. The inaugural function
was organized by Vrndavan Research Institute at Vrindavan on 25 November,
2015. Another function was organized by Vrindavan Research Institute at
Mayapur, Nadia, the birth place of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, during 05-07 November,
2016. A Mobile Exhibition named “Shri Chaitanya Prem Rath” which started from
Vrindavan on 08 February, 2016 passed through various places in Uttar Pradesh,
Jharkhand, Bihar, West Bengal, Odisha reached Delhi on 09 March, 2016 on its
way back to Vrindavan. ISKCON, Delhi also organized a separate function on
this occasion in Delhi on 28 May, 2016. All the above programmes/events were
sponsored by Ministry of Culture.
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Sanjay Kumar/jk/Culture-01/25/11/2016