Sri Chaitanya Charitamrita, the meaning of Rath Yatra is elaborately explained by Sri Krishnadas Kaviraj Goswami. We were describing, when Lord Chaitanya was living Shantipur to go to Jagannath puri, as he was living for Shantipur all the devotees were following him, in the outskirts of the town, Lord Chaitanya told them, you should all return to your homes and always chant the Holy names of Krsna, that is your first and foremost responsibility of your life, to chant the Holy names of Krsna. The devotees could not disobey the Lord’s orders, when he left their hearts were broken in separation. They experienced the exact same feelings as the gopis of Vrundavan felt, when Krsna left Vrundavan for Mathura. There was the same type of scene, as he was walking away, they could stop him, devotees were weeping & falling to the ground, unconscious and getting up, weeping and falling to the ground unconscious. It was the re-enactment of Krsna leaving from Vrundavan for Mathura. After many years, of being away from Vrundavan, Krsna invited the Brijvasis to Kurukshetra to honour the Solar eclipse. There Nanda, Yashoda and gopas and the gopis saw Krsna, again after long time. At this time, he did not have a peacock feather, in his beautiful clustered hair, but he had a the crown of a prince, he was not decorated with the Gunjamala or the wild forest flower garland, but he had the armour of the great Kshatriya, he was not surrounded by cowherd boys and cows but there was chariots and elephants, the armies of soldiers.

There was not the bank of the Jamuna and the singing and the chirping of the birds of Vrndavan, and the cooing of the peacocks, but there was rattling of royal chariots. So Srimati Radharani, she was praying to Krsna, please come back to Vrundavan, I do not experience even one drop of happiness here, in compared to the happiness we feel when you were in Vrundavan as a cowherd boy, playing your flute. Her prayers, melted the heart of Krsna, and it was the meditation of the residents of Vrundavan of bringing Krsna back to Vrundavan, which is the Rathyathra. Balaram, Subadhra the brother and sister of Lord Krsna, along with Krsna who is Jagannath seated on beautiful chariots and pulled by love of his devotees back to his eternal home, the hearts of his devotees in Vrundavan. Srimati Radharani, told Krsna, “My heart is non different in Vrindavan, please, please, place your Lotus feet in my heart.”

Srila Prabhupad explained during the Ratyatra Lecture, that the Ratyatra is the actually emotional expression of the devotees as they are pulling the chariot and leading Lord Jagannath chariot on, we are bringing Jagannath back into home of our heart. The day before Ratyatra is Gundicha Marjana, where Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and his devotees would perfectly clean the Gundicha temple. Srila Prabhupad and Bhakti Siddanta Saraswathi Thakur explained that the Gundicha temple represents our hearts and the Ratyatra is to bring Krsna back into our hearts. That our hearts has to be completely pure before Krsna will manifest himself. So the process is of devotional service, is the process of purifying the heart, so that it is the proper sitting place for Krsna to give his Darshan, not only to us, but through us, through everything we say, or everything we do to the world.

When Prabhupad was very small child, he had such a natural attraction for this Ratyatra, it was one of the very very favourite festivals of Lord Chaitanya in Puri. There is entire chapter of Sri Chaitanya Charitamrita, describing how Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu in the mood of Radharani, was dancing and singing in transcendental ecstasy in front of the chariot of Jagannath, during the Ratyatra. Srila Prabhupad, as a small child, would arrange Ratyatra every year with his small ally ways of his neighbourhood in Calcutta. His father was very happy to help him, Gaura Mohan dev was so very proud his little Abhaycharan, that he had such natural devotion to Radha Govinda in Jagannath, that they would arrange to make nice little chariot and Srila Prabhupad, and his sister and his friends would decorate that chariot, and they would arrange neighbourhood people to cook large quantities of Prasad, and they would have their deities of Jagannath and pull them through the streets. _______ki Jai07:110. And distribute kichoris and nice Prasad to everyone. So was Prabhupad’s childhood’s play which was an active great devotion. We read the prayers of Prabhupad on Jaladoota what an impossible miracle it was. Prabhupad was living in the Bowry, no help, no followers, no finances, nothing. A little 70 year old Indian man, in the gigantic all consuming city of New york. Just a few years later, Prabhupad established Ratyatra San Fransisco, Malathi Mataji was there, who was in the back of the flat that truck, they had Jagannath placed in one way and Balaram and Subadhra facing opposite ways, when back of one little truck no one was pulling, they drove it through the cities of New York. As far as Prasad distribution, they had no money, they just made dry chapatis, and distributed every where and chanted with enthusiasm. That was the first Ratyatra in the Western world. Very simple, Prabhupad gave drawings of how to make a proper chariot, Dayananda Prabhu and others made beautiful beautiful chariot, just like in Puri, but because of the size of roads, it had to be somewhat small. Jagannath Puri, the whole town was developed simply to facilitate Ratyatra, New York City was designed for other purposes. Soon, Ratyatras were going on in practically every major city on the planet, in Africa, in Europe, in Asia, in America, in Australia at the most glorious spiritual victory in our modern history is when Srila Prabhupad, who somehow or other started his movement in this Little store Front, 26 2nd avenue in the Loris side of the New York. When Mukunda Goswami Maharaj, arranged Prabhupad to get this place, because he was homeless, they said: “we can help you with the first month’s rent but after that we do not think we can help you”, where is Prabhupad going to get the money for rent. He would sit here and chant Hare Krsna, speak from Bhagavadgita, Chaitanya Charitamrita, Srimad Bhagavatam and gradually Krsna supplied everything from living on the streets homelessly to this Little store front in New York city, in 1976 the most important street, the most important city, 5th Avenue of New York was specifically reserved for Jagannath Ratyatra. Hari Bol!!!!!!! Three massive chariots, reaching to the sky of Baladev, Subadhra, and Jagannath. Thousands of devotees from all over the world, singing and dancing, thousands of books being distributed, beautiful festival, the city of New York is inundated by Prabhupad’s mercy, the pleased department of New York, Prabhupad was engaging them as Jagannath’s personal attendants. Clearing the roads. What a majestic victory that was when Prabhupad was sitting on Sripad’s cart. The whole city at his feet. Prabhupad had this complete faith in the mercy of Jagannath, His Holy names and his desires of his Gurumaharaj, such a miracle, and every year since then on 5th Avenue, Ratyatra has been taking place. If we have that faith in the power of The Supreme Personality of Godhead and the desire of his pure devotees and nothing can stand in our way from reaching more and more and more of the suffering conditioned souls and giving them love of God and shelter at the Lotus feet of Prabhupad and the previous Acharyas. This is what Ratyatra in New York represents to us. Oh! May Srila Prabhupad and Lord Jagannath bless all of you. To experience and give the experience of this great causeless mercy on the auspicious pray14:05 tomorrow. Washington square part becomes Vrundavan, then wherever it starts is Dwaraka. This Prabhupad by his mercy he is transforming New York city into this spiritual world. Hari Bol! We are so fortunate that we can participate. My obeisance’s to Dayananda Prabhu to his good wife for making such wonderful, wonderful arrangements here at 26th Ratyatra, Yagnapurush prabhu in his ashram, Rambhaju prabhu in temple for sustaining and expanding Prabhupad’s wonderful desires here into real and my special gratitude to all of you for so patiently tolerating me all this time to night, but there is a reward, Srila Prabhupad’s Mahaprasad. Laughter of devotees. So any Siksha. Sarire abidya Jal, sloka16:10.

Srila Prabhupad ki Jai!!!!!!!!!!!!!