Temples affiliated with the International Society For Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) celebrated Janmashtami on Monday on a quiet note. The ISKCON Radha Gopinath Temple in Girgaum Chowpatty along with the Govardhan Eco Village organised a virtual darshan for devotees.
To mark Janmashthami, Mangal Arati was held around 5 am. Five aratis were held during the course of the day and 56 bhoga offerings were made to the Lord. A Maha Abhishek ceremony was held at night. It was followed by the offering of Maha Bhoga of 108 food items to the deity and a Maha Arati at midnight.
According to the members of ISKCON, the Bhogas were not sent to the devotees this year. "We have created a virtual portal for devotees to do online darshan. However, due to the Covid-19 outbreak, we refrained from sending Bhogas to devotees or allowing them inside the premises to have the prasadam," said a member.
Janmashtami celebrations were held in more than 850 ISKCON temples in India and different parts of the world, including ISKCON New York Bhakti Center and ISKCON Auckland New Zealand.