A unique initiative has been taken on by the Puttige Matha in Udupi, in the Indian state of Karnataka, which will see Hindus (and Krishna devotees from other faiths) from around the world partake in a special two-year project named the ‘Koti Gita Lekhana Yagna’.
After a period of 14 years, the Puttige Matha will have the chance to serve the renowned Udupi Shri Krishna Temple for two years, starting in January 2024. The temple - started in the 13th century by Madhvacharya - is one of the few Krishna temples in the southern regions of India and is run by the Ashta Matha [eight monasteries].
To commemorate the occasion, Puttige Matha – which has branches around the world - has taken on the initiative to have 10 million people complete handwritten copies of the Bhagavad Gita during the two years of their turn.
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To find out more about the initiative and the importance of the Bhagavad Gita in today’s world, iGlobal reached out to Acharya Ganesh Raveendra Bhat, Chief Priest of the Puttige Matha UK branch, and followers of the Matha - Mrs Sneha Venkat, an IT professional, and Narhari Joshi, who is also one of the co-founders of Rangoli Radio.
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“The Bhagavad Gita contains 701 shlokas [verses], and the Matha’s two year turn also constitutes about 700 days, so the idea is that devotees can write a minimum of one shloka a day for the next two years,” explains Joshi.
“During the previous turn of the Puttige Matha, Swamiji built a special Gita Mandir in Udupi exclusively dedicated to spreading the Krishna Sandesh [Krishna’s message] around the world. This time, he is determined to have a minimum of one crore [10 million] individuals to learn, practice and write the Bhagavad Gita,” Joshi said.
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Upon completion of the Bhagavad Gita write-up, the manuscripts are to be sent to the relevant regional Mathas by post, where they will be blessed by pooja and returned to the devotees to be kept as a memento.
Info: Venkata Krishna Vrundana