Our team recently visited the ISKCON temple at Rajajinagar , Bangalore which is about 4-5 kms from the city center. In this article we share our experience of the visit.
It was a Sunday morning when our team decided to visit the Malleshwaram old temples and then reach here as the final spot. It was burning hot when they reached here at around 12.30 PM , we thought the temple may get closed soon. But to our luck as it was Sunday it was open till 2.00 PM so a sigh of relief. Few of us in the team had already visited , so they were aware of the systematic approach followed in this temple.
A quick history of Rajajinagar ISKCON -
As many of us already know ISKCON stands for International Society for Krishna Consciousness - which is a charitable trust which aims at propagating lord Sri Krishna's teachings from Sri Bhagavad Gita and Bhagavatam. It was consecrated during the year 1988 when the project started , the simple architecture was ready by 1990 and by 1997 the complete beautiful temple was ready. Since then it has been consistently attracting visitors all over the world. Today its in the midst of the busy surroundings , Apartments , Highways and Metros.
There is lot more to do at ISKCON than a simple temple darshan. The entry to the temple is free . If you happen to visit the temple on a holiday or Sunday then you will end up standing in the queue for at-least 60 to 90 minutes to get the darshan due to heavy in pour of devotees all over. There is an arrangement made for special entry for a group i.e, Rs.300 for six person. This is really worth as you could quickly get on to the sanctums in 10 min , thats a big relief isint it . So if your group is less than 6 , you may think its not worth . But take our words - this is really worth. We luckily got another group , shared our tickets with them and managed to get darshan faster. Also in this special entry you get a very good amount of time to spend at each sanctum where the guards don't rush you. So if you happen to visit with you elders , you should go for this special entry.
The management of visitors is awesomely planned and well executed. At first , arrangements are made to collect the foot wear safe in a cover - token system , next the wallets and other important stuffs in cloak room , then as the queue passes first we get the darshan of Sri NarasimhaSwamy , then Sri Venkateshwara and finally Sri Krishna. Throughout the walk , all over there is an audio chanting 'Hare rama , hare Rama , Rama Rama , hare hare , hare Krishna Hare krishna , krishna krishna , hare hare' which is a good method to induce Bhakthi for that moment.
All idols are decorated with shining ornaments and mesmerizing to the eyes. One will at-least need a minute to review the idol. The main sanctum may be an octagonal tomb, with paintings depicting Sri krishna's life right from birth till the end is awesome to watch. Idols of Sri Krishna Radha , Sri Krishna Balarama and Sri Nitagi Gauranga are pleasant to the eyes. The main sanctum is not less than a palace look. Also are idols of ISKCON guru Sri Prabhupada. When you take the special entry ticket you get a chance to go around the sanctum where we noticed different avatars of Vishnu are nicely framed.
After the darshan , the big list of shopping centers starts - Books , CDs , Devotional songs , Bags , T-Shirts , Kurtas , Idols , key chains , photo frames , toys , eatables right from biscuits, samosas , cool drinks , ice creams till puliogre , Holiges. Oh ! One will end up spending at-least an hour passing through all these counters - all items are very tempting and costs little more when compared outside temple. For children there are stalls to watch animated krishna movies.
ISKCON being a charitable society stands by its name when it comes to serving food. The temple has a free lunch program to all visitors who may visit and take the prasada. At lunch rice sambar and rice butter milk with a pickle and curry are served . The hall may easily accommodate 200 people every 15 min. There is a small kalyani constructed next to this lunch hall . The view of the temple is very good from this spot. You may also donate to the AkshyaPatra trust of ISKCON here which works for the improvement of children.
Temple timings are as below -
Monday to Friday : 4.15 AM to 5 AM , 7.15 AM to 1 PM , 4 PM to 8.20 PM
Weekends & public Holidays : 4.15 AM to 5 AM , 7.15 AM to 1.30 PM , 4 PM to 8.20 PM
Overall , a very nice spot to full fill a day with family , children and friends - a spiritual , tastier , shopping visit . Best time to visit would be early morning and by evening to get a good view of the surroundings.
Do visit here and share your experience. Check out our touring spots guide for more details on other spots
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| ISKCON Rajajinagar |
It was a Sunday morning when our team decided to visit the Malleshwaram old temples and then reach here as the final spot. It was burning hot when they reached here at around 12.30 PM , we thought the temple may get closed soon. But to our luck as it was Sunday it was open till 2.00 PM so a sigh of relief. Few of us in the team had already visited , so they were aware of the systematic approach followed in this temple.
A quick history of Rajajinagar ISKCON -
As many of us already know ISKCON stands for International Society for Krishna Consciousness - which is a charitable trust which aims at propagating lord Sri Krishna's teachings from Sri Bhagavad Gita and Bhagavatam. It was consecrated during the year 1988 when the project started , the simple architecture was ready by 1990 and by 1997 the complete beautiful temple was ready. Since then it has been consistently attracting visitors all over the world. Today its in the midst of the busy surroundings , Apartments , Highways and Metros.
Whats up at ISKCON
There is lot more to do at ISKCON than a simple temple darshan. The entry to the temple is free . If you happen to visit the temple on a holiday or Sunday then you will end up standing in the queue for at-least 60 to 90 minutes to get the darshan due to heavy in pour of devotees all over. There is an arrangement made for special entry for a group i.e, Rs.300 for six person. This is really worth as you could quickly get on to the sanctums in 10 min , thats a big relief isint it . So if your group is less than 6 , you may think its not worth . But take our words - this is really worth. We luckily got another group , shared our tickets with them and managed to get darshan faster. Also in this special entry you get a very good amount of time to spend at each sanctum where the guards don't rush you. So if you happen to visit with you elders , you should go for this special entry.
The management of visitors is awesomely planned and well executed. At first , arrangements are made to collect the foot wear safe in a cover - token system , next the wallets and other important stuffs in cloak room , then as the queue passes first we get the darshan of Sri NarasimhaSwamy , then Sri Venkateshwara and finally Sri Krishna. Throughout the walk , all over there is an audio chanting 'Hare rama , hare Rama , Rama Rama , hare hare , hare Krishna Hare krishna , krishna krishna , hare hare' which is a good method to induce Bhakthi for that moment.
All idols are decorated with shining ornaments and mesmerizing to the eyes. One will at-least need a minute to review the idol. The main sanctum may be an octagonal tomb, with paintings depicting Sri krishna's life right from birth till the end is awesome to watch. Idols of Sri Krishna Radha , Sri Krishna Balarama and Sri Nitagi Gauranga are pleasant to the eyes. The main sanctum is not less than a palace look. Also are idols of ISKCON guru Sri Prabhupada. When you take the special entry ticket you get a chance to go around the sanctum where we noticed different avatars of Vishnu are nicely framed.
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| Image collected from ISKCON website - evening awesome view |
After the darshan , the big list of shopping centers starts - Books , CDs , Devotional songs , Bags , T-Shirts , Kurtas , Idols , key chains , photo frames , toys , eatables right from biscuits, samosas , cool drinks , ice creams till puliogre , Holiges. Oh ! One will end up spending at-least an hour passing through all these counters - all items are very tempting and costs little more when compared outside temple. For children there are stalls to watch animated krishna movies.
ISKCON being a charitable society stands by its name when it comes to serving food. The temple has a free lunch program to all visitors who may visit and take the prasada. At lunch rice sambar and rice butter milk with a pickle and curry are served . The hall may easily accommodate 200 people every 15 min. There is a small kalyani constructed next to this lunch hall . The view of the temple is very good from this spot. You may also donate to the AkshyaPatra trust of ISKCON here which works for the improvement of children.
Temple timings are as below -
Monday to Friday : 4.15 AM to 5 AM , 7.15 AM to 1 PM , 4 PM to 8.20 PM
Weekends & public Holidays : 4.15 AM to 5 AM , 7.15 AM to 1.30 PM , 4 PM to 8.20 PM
Overall , a very nice spot to full fill a day with family , children and friends - a spiritual , tastier , shopping visit . Best time to visit would be early morning and by evening to get a good view of the surroundings.
Do visit here and share your experience. Check out our touring spots guide for more details on other spots
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