At the end of June, we were blessed with the arrival of two young Gyr cows, now named Ganga and Yamuna. If you look on our website, iskconpv.org, and click on go-seva, you will see the first pictures of them. In the beginning they were not used to eating fresh fruits and veggies, but now they will kick up their heels and come running any time anyone comes to visit them, for they are now used to such treats – and expect them!

The Temple received some very wonderful donations, some of which were given at the Deities’ installation last year. Robert, from Winston Salem, gave a very generous donation, which has helped us immensely. These donations have gone towards granite flooring and general improvements, which you will see in the following pictures. Although so much has been done, there is still a lot to do to actually finish the Temple, but we are getting there! Much progress has been made and we are indebted to those who donated for and helped with these improvements. May Lord Krsna bless you a million-fold!

July was a busy month. In the initial stages of the tile-laying, Suresvara prabhu, now based in Tuscon, AZ, presented his world-famous, Srila Prabhupada, Our Founder Acarya series, which he had spent quite a bit of time updating. Even while giving the seminar, he received new information, which he immediately incorporated into the presentation. Needless to say, the seminar was profound and inspiring. We thank Suresvara prabhu profusely for coming and doing this.

Candramauli Swami also came in July for a one-day, Sunday feast visit. During his lecture he spoke about Lord Caitanya’s Siksastakam and chanting the holy name, which inspired us to take our chanting more seriously. After the feast, some of us sat around and talked about the old days and what it was like living in the temples. Some, including Maharaja, told some wonderful and personal Prabhupada pastimes! We are hopeful that he will come back next year.

And – we had a visit from a young lady, now 18, who used to live here when little – Krsnaya dasi. Everyone was very happy to see her and hear how she recently performed her arangetram (the on-stage debut of Bharatanatyam dance, a traditional dance from India), after many years of training. Her dances were wonderful and we hope she will come again soon for another visit and performance.

We are now in August, and after having celebrated the appearance of Lord Balarama, along with Jhulan yatra, with a sweet program, in-depth class and wonderful feast, we are just about to enter the nectar of celebrating Lord Krsna’s and Srila Prabhupada’s appearance days, two of the most important days of the year. And this year, Srimati Radharani will make Her divine appearance at the end of this month.

In September, the 9th and 10th will mark 20 years since we began cooking and selling pakoras and tomato chutney at the Stokes Stomp! If you’d like to join in the fun, come to Moratock Park at the Dan River in Danbury (in Stokes County), any time between 11am and 6pm on those two days.

For now, we come to a close. But we shall soon return with more nectar for iskconpv.org, which has artistically been put together and taken care of by bhakta Mark (who’s now in CA) and for our Temple of the Holy Name facebook page, headed up by Parasurama dasa. (And thank you, Arya Sangama dasa for all the wonderful pictures!) So when you come to the Temple, if you haven’t already done so, please sign our guest list on the tablet (donated and taken care of by Chris Templon) so we can let you know what’s happening! Hare Krsna.

FLOORS:

A lot of work goes into laying a floor.

Beginning stages in the classroom.

Byron is almost finished laying prasadam room floor.

Govinda is helping Byron.

Narayana dasa and his brother Prabhupada Charan dasa from New Talavana laid these beautiful granite tiles in the temple room.

Notice the beautiful pattern in the prasadam room floor. Next, the walls will be painted.

One side of the balcony finished - so beautifully done!

Sauri dasa laid these attractive tiles in the back room. (There's a door in the box, which will complete the room.)

The front hall floor has a beautiful mandala, sponsored by Sarva-drik dasa & Sudevi dasi. (The clothing in the background is from the store).

This is a closer look at the beautiful temple floor.

Tiles for the prasadam room floor, etc. have arrived!

Upstairs before the granite tiles are laid.

DEVOTEES:

Ah! Sunday feast cooks! Pankajanabha dasa making a delicious subji & Sivananda dasa making chapatis, which are all puffing up!

Shyamala Sakhi dasi and her son, Govinda dasa, in the kitchen.

EVENTS:

His Holiness Candramauli Swami preparing to give the Sunday Feast lecture.

His Holiness Candramauli Swami speaking on Lord Caitanya’s Siksastakam and chanting the holy name.

Suresvara prabhu's seminar.

Suresvara prabhu is presenting his updated seminar, Srila Prabhupada, Our Founder Acarya.

Suresvara prabhu's seminar.

Krsnaya is explaining what her dance means.

IMPROVEMENTS:

A side view of the new wood stove. The cleared area is for a carport, which will house the wood.

Energy-saving laundry lines for Deity towels, etc.

Madhuha dasa built the new well house.

Madhuha dasa installed these much needed sinks and cabinets in the prasadam room.

Many donors helped us get this large & efficient wood stove to keep the temple warm during the winter months.

Our new, energy-saving wood stove and some of the not yet stacked wood.

Radheya das made these shoe racks outside the front door for a Boy Scout project.

Ramananda dasa made these picnic tables for a Boy Scout project. They sport large, green umbrellas, which give nice shade.

Some years ago, Haridas dasa installed these swings (and monkey bars, not shown) for the playground during a Boy Scout project.

The new woodburner, covered by a carport - the 2 boxes in the forefront are parts for the new reach-in cooler.

The temple's new, sturdy storage shed.

Umesh and Virun Kucheria donated this new refrigerator.

We purchased this new, mini refrigerator in the pujari room for maha prasadam.

LANDSCAPING:

A baby Tulasi plant sits next to the fragrant roses.

Bala dasa does a wonderful job keeping the temple ground nicely mowed. Here he's waving as Arya Sangama prabhu snaps the picture.

Michael & Eric from nearby Beautiful Earth are doing the landscaping. Ramai dasa did the stairs & walkway as a Boy Scout project.

Sauri dasa is growing marigold plants in the brown, rectangular area, which he grew from seed - all for the Deities.

The beginning stages of landscaping by the front walkway.

The landscaping is beginning outside the front door.

Water, sun, and devotion will grow a beautiful garden, which Sauri prabhu is growing for the Temple.

What a beautiful picture taken from Arya Sangama, Lalita Candra, and Nandini Tulasi's porch!

PUJARI ROOM:

Abhirama Sakha dasa handcrafted beautiful, solid wood drawers for the Deities' paraphernalia and with the help of his family finished them.

Andrea Templon and Kamala dasi run the temple store.

Cabinets in the making, which eventually took up most of the living space at Abhirama Sakha dasa and Syama Gauri dasi's house.

Deity outfits, Tulasi skirts, etc. are hanging in the finished closets, which Abhirama Sakha handcrafted.

Here are some of the drawers with Gaura-Nitai's paraphernalia.

You can open the Deity closets with any of the 3 sliding doors.

STORE:

So many beautiful things to buy from the store!

There are a lot of devotional items for sale in the temple store.