DIVE DEEP INTO HEARING & CHANTING
BRING THE GIFT OF BHAKTI HOME
When it happens?
- Members can schedule Kirtan at their homes across the Bay Area on Friday at 6:00 PM, Saturday at 11:00 AM & 5:30 PM, and Sunday at 11:00 AM.
What we do?
- Deliver a unique, immersive spiritual experience
- Bring singers, instruments, guest speaker, and a PA system
- Guide you on logistics and best practices
What you do?
- Open your hearts to welcoming holy names at your home
- Invite your friends, neighbors, colleagues, alumni, and relatives to enjoy this spiritually blissful experience
- Join a noble cause & make the world a better place
Feel instant happiness
Deepen your connection
Get positive energy
Experience the transformation
Control your mind
Learn the science
Check availability and book your Kirtan / Bhajan event today!
KIRTAN CLIPS
WE ARE HERE TO HELP YOU
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
What are the occasions to have kirtan/katha at home?
- Memorial service for loved ones who have passed away
- Birthdays / anniversaries
- Housewarming
- Parents/relatives visiting from India
- Festivals (Navratri / Holi / Diwali / Dussehra)
- Prayers for health and wellness
- New year or holidays
- Pooja (Shraadh / Pitra Paksha)
- Any auspicious occasion
What is the usual structure of these programs?
The program generally lasts 1.5-2 hours. The content can be tweaked per host’s requirement, but here is the recommended breakup:
- Ice-breaker talk & overview of glories of holy names: 10-15 min
- Bhajan/kirtan(s): 20-25 min
- Inspirational talk on Bhagavad Gita / Srimad Bhagavatam Maha Puran: 35-45 min
- Bhajan/kirtan(s): 20-25 min
- Arti and offer bhoga to the Lord: 5-10 min
- Prasadam and mingling: 30-45 min
IMPORTANT: Per our experience, if you want to start at 6:00pm, ask your friends to come at 5:00pm. Indians tend to come an hour or so late.
What are your charges?
Mantra purifies your mind, taking bath purifies your body, and giving charity purifies your wealth.
Our volunteers do not formally charge anything for the service and they drive 30-45 mins each way for conducting the program. However, we humbly encourage you to donate from the heart for supporting temple operations and Sanatan dharma.
You can donate via Apple Pay, Paypal, debit/credit cards, Zelle, Cheque, and Venmo.
You will get a receipt for your donations for tax deduction purposes.
What are the recommendations for food/prasadam?
Food must be sattvik and vegetarian (minus onion, garlic, mushrooms, gelatin, brinjal). At minimum, you can just have khichdi, dahi, papad, fruits. While offering naivedyam or bhoga, tulsi leaves should be put on the plate as that is desirable to the Lord.
For cooking at home or with friends, kindly note:
- The utensils should not have been used for cooking non-veg or eggs or seafood before.
- If you’re asking your friends to make anything, please ensure they are following the above cooking standards.
- While cooking, you can put bhajans or Hare Krishna kirtan from YouTube to keep your mind spiritually inclined.
Outside catering options:
- Kaunteya Sakha Das (510) 345-9011 (devotee catering option, food will be made in ISKCON Berkeley, if possible speak in Hindi or Telugu)
- Krishna Prana Das (415)-472-9921 (Tri-valley, devotee owned catering)
- Yogi Plate (669) 278-8417 (South Bay) (devotee catering service)
- Harsha Jain (510) 298-8116, (510) 207-6767 (Fremont)
- Chat Bhavan (Fremont/ Sunnyvale/ Dublin) Ask for Jain Food
- Ananda Bhavan (Pleasanton) (925) 924-1122 Ask for Jain Food
- Sricatering.com (Livermore/Tri-valley area) (813) 389-4225 or (813) 735-9815 Ask for Jain Food
Please note:
- We are not directly associated with any of these caterers.
- Request them not to taste ahead of time as it is for Bhoga for the Lord.
What're the Dos & Don'ts to make the program successful?
- Cast a wide net: invite your friends, neighbors, co-workers, alumni, relatives, at least two-three weeks before the event. Multiple that by 2 to account for the network of your spouse. We aim for 20+ people and love big crowds. Having more people benefits more people spiritually. Typically, 25% confirmed RSVPs also drop out last minute, so factor that into your planning.
- Start early with SMS/Whatsapp/Evite to secure your audience. Send reminders to have good responses. We request at least 15 people in the event to make it worth the effort.
- Give your guests 1 hour before the actual start time. Indians take 45mins-1 hour to come. There are a few exceptions, but it’s rare. It’s good to keep buffer.
- Have a display monitor for showing bhajans to the guests. This avoids wasting paper for printouts. Otherwise you can also send links in Whatsapp groups. The link of Hindi bhajans is https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Rl_T4v_nDBEqa20vQQWlF5FWX1qJuJIHtc-L7TIklFc/edit and we also use https://kksongs.org
- Avoid distractions during the satsang: arrange a separate sound proof area for kids (e.g. bedroom, guest room, garage, backyard) where they can engage in coloring, games, watching Little Krishna movies, etc.
- Leash your pets in a separate room/area. They can be very distracting.
- Sitting arrangement should be such that temple devotees face the audience. The room should be symmetrical and rectangular. There should not be a significant gap between the temple team and audience.
- Take ample videos during the satsang to capture the high points and share with the temple devotees. Please post videos on social media with your comments and recommend our service at http://bit.ly/kirtanservice and ask them to call/text Govind Das at +13417580572. We need all the help in getting more bookings for the pleasure of Shri Radha Madanmohan.
Do you have any recordings?
Yes, please review selected recordings at bit.ly/kirtanexamples
See pravachan recordings
What bhajans and Deities do you cover?
Our goal is to recreate the Vrindavan mood. We do a variety of nam sankirtan (chanting of holy names) and popular bhajans glorifying several deities such as Lord Krishna, Srimati Radharani, Balaram, Shri Ram and Sita devi, Shri Vishnu, Jagannath, Shri Narsimhadev, Chaitanya Mahaprabhu (Joint incarnation of Krishna and Radharani), Nityananda Prabhu (Incarnation of Lord Balaram) etc.
The bhajans are in Hindi, Braj bhasha, Sanskrit, Bengali. We also cover bhajans by devotees like Surdas, Tulsidas, Meera bai etc. We are constantly evolving our compilation of bhajans at https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Rl_T4v_nDBEqa20vQQWlF5FWX1qJuJIHtc-L7TIklFc/edit.
Please note that it gets challenging to do unheard bhajans on the spot. We prefer to do bhajans that are from authentic sources and not contradictory to scriptural teachings. We request your cooperation and trust in conducting the spiritual program for the best outcome.
Any good template for SMS/WhatsApp/Evite messaging for guests?
SMS/Whatsapp: I’d like to personally invite you for a special evening of transcendental musical meditation for gaining auspiciousness, positive energy and beating stress. It will be really awesome if you join us.
Evite: Dear Friends, You are cordially invited for a blissful evening for transcendental musical meditation that will make you happy, stress-free and positive! You will get Lord’s mercy and will be able to control your mind better. The spiritual impact of transcendental musical meditation cannot be explained in words. It has to be experienced.
Kirtaneers from Iskcon of Silicon Valley will come with musical instruments and sing in easy to follow melodies. We guarantee that you will truly enjoy this experience. Please call/text on xxxxxxxx for any questions. Looking forward to seeing you at our home.
What is the optimal seating arrangement?
The layout of the seating makes a big difference in the general engagement of the guests. The temple devotees should directly face the audience. It’s better to pick a room that is rectangular or symmetric in shape. Sitting on the floor is preferred to keep the mood traditional. For older people, it’s okay to have chairs at the back or sides.
You may have to move around some furniture to make this possible. It’s really important to have comfortable seating for the guests because they will be sitting for a couple hours. If you have hardwood or marble or vinyl flooring, blankets, chatai, or comforters should be put on the floor. If your floor has carpet, you can just put bed sheets on top of it.
Backyard is also an option for the venue, but note that for afternoon slots, it will be better to get a shamiana or tent to get shade. People don’t want to sit in the Sun. For evenings, you can ask them to wear jackets or shawls to beat the cold, depending on weather.
How should the altar be setup?
You can have a small, simple altar with photo / printout / murti (any thing is fine) of Radha Krishna/Sita Ram/Lakshmi Narayan. You can decorate the table with some flowers, agarbatti and oil/ghee/artificial lamp to make it aesthetically pleasing.
How do people feel after hosting this program?
Please review feedback from hosts here.
What is your mission and how can we support it?
Our mission is to spread the holy names, teachings of Bhagavad Gita and Srimad Bhagavatam Maha Puran, and distribute the aforementioned scriptures throughout the Bay Area.
You can support us by being an ambassador by hosting a satsang at your home. We encourage you to consider taking a set of the Srimad Bhagavatam Mahapuran—a Vedic encyclopedia known for imparting the gift of bhakti swiftly. They may donate to help print more books, or you can sponsor them as special gifts.
Additionally, you have the opportunity to support our goshala (cow protection initiative), which is a vital part of our community service.
Please also join our local Bhakti Vriksha satsangs and inspire your group to visit the temple on weekends with their families for spiritual enrichment.
Join our newsletter at http://eepurl.com/cw8unD to be informed of weekly events. You will get one email per week.
KIRTAN TESTIMONIALS
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