Thousands Participate in Rathayatra Event Held in Moscow, Russia

By ISKCON News - 28.8 2024

The 9th Annual India Day festival was recently held in Moscow, Russia at the “Dream Island” Landscape Park. This past weekend’s event (August 15-18th), which is the heart of the multi-day festival, welcomed more than 600,000 people. Over 2 million were estimated to attend all the festival days.

Dozens of religious and cultural organizations participated in the massive event, which included 20 themed zones, each with a wide variety of tents. ISKCON Russia, one of the leading organizations involved, has been participating in this hugely popular gathering for years. “Devotees had a ‘tent city’ at the festival, which welcomed tens of thousands of guests and distributed large quantities of prasadam,” said Acyutatma Das, the ISKCON GBC for Russia.

A stunning Rathayatra procession with Lord Jagannatha, Baladeva, and Lady Subhadra, coordinated with appreciative city officials, was also organized by ISKCON devotees and has become a centerpiece of the festival.  Additionally, there was a Jhulan Yatra with Radha-Krishna on a beautifully decorated swing, a boat with Radha-Krishna that could be led by guests, and even Vedic marriages conducted.

The Indian Ambassador of India to Russia, Mr. Vinay Kumar, Vijay Kumar Dubey, a member of the Lok Sabha( Indian Parliament) with Sadhu Priya Das, the Regional Secretary for ISKCON Moscow.

Devotional dancing in front of the Rath cart.

The “tent city” welcomed thousands of guests.