Course Summary
As part of the ISKCON Deity Worship Ministry’s expanding regional training strategy, a nine-day temple worship course is taught in conjunction with Bhaktivedanta College situated at ISKCON Radhadesh, Belgium. The training covers many philosophical and practical details, as well as written and practical assessments while utilising a range of teaching approaches including interactive and experiential learning.
Schedule & Topics
The exact daily schedule of the course will be given to students just before the start of the course.
Topics that will be covered during the course include:
The course begins with an introduction discussing the benefits of Deity worship and the reasons why we do it. It is also established that Deity worship is integral to devotional service and ISKCON’s mission.
Points covered within this topic are:
– The importance of cleanliness and purity in Krishna consciousness and Deity worship
– How to prepare for worship
– How to do the acamana and samanya arghya procedures
– What are the different materials that paraphernalia should be made from
– How to clean worship paraphernalia
– The significance of the maha-mantra and other mantras in Deity worship
Points covered within this topic are:
– What is a Deity
– Which Deities do we worship and why
– What is the mood of temple worship
– The role of a guru in Deity worship
Points covered within this topic are:
– How it is that Deity worship is an authorised process capable of giving us the highest spiritual success
Points covered within this topic are:
– Why and how to offer bhoga (food)
– How do we know if the Lord accepts our offerings
Points covered within this topic are:
– Our relationship with Krishna
– How we can cultivate our relationship with Krishna
Points covered within this topic are:
– What is an arati
– Why do we offer arati
– What do the items that are offered mean
– What skills do we need to perform and arati
– ‘Sodasopacara Puja’ – how to offer a puja to the Lord
Assessment
Components towards students’ final grade will include:
Homework assignments
Written exams
Acamana assessment
Bhoga offering assessment
Attendance
Classroom etiquette and participation
Practical assessment of performing sodasopacara puja (sixteen-item worship*) of Sri Sri Gaura Nitai, with students working in teams and being both supported and peer-assessed by one another.
*The sixteen-item worship includes bathing and dressing the Deities, putting on ornaments and garlands, offering flowers to Their lotus feet, and offering Them bhoga.
Studying onsite
To come to study at Bhaktivedanta College in Radhadesh, Belgium, one needs to be minimum 18 years old. Please also have in mind the following practical considerations:
Staying in the College building – there is a limited number of rooms available that can be rented;
Staying in the temple asram – it is expected from all residents of the temple to participate in the full morning program starting with the mangala-arati with a minimum financial contribution of 10€ per night;
Prasadam – taken in the temple for a minimum fee of 90€; days besides the course are not included and should be organized/paid separately;
Money – it is important to have some money available as Radhadesh is in a remote location and any trip to nearby towns requires paying for the transport; also, in case there is a medical need, services need to be paid on the spot and refund is requested from your insurance company later on.
For more details, please contact us at studentcare@bhaktivedantacollege.com.
Registration
Deity Worship Course can be attended without any prerequisites.
The number of participants is limited, so register now!
Price: €450*
*potential additional costs: accommodation, prasadam, travel, and visa costs
Your spot at the course is secured once you pay a non-refundable deposit of €50.
