Just off the busiest street in all of Europe, is a small temple, that has existed since 1969. Inside are the most beautiful deities of Radha Londonisvara (meaning Krishna, the Lord of London) and a family of wonderful devotees that has grown from four in 1969, to hundreds in 2009!

stopped through London on our way to South Africa to take part in the celebrations. On the night before the anniversary, a huge event was held at the stylish Troxy club in the East End. Hundreds of volunteers teamed up to decorate, organise, cook, run sound and lighting, host, photograph and video and perform for the event, all in honour of the contribution that this beautiful temple has made to the city of London since its inception.

It was our honour to perform ‘Govindam’ prayers (two verses from the Brahma Samhita – spoken by Lord Brahma to Lord Krishna at the beginning of creation) with Yamuna devi, one of the original six who gave their lives to start the temple in the 60s. These six struggled through every kind of difficulty imaginable, and within a very short time began to achieve great success, striking up a friendship with George Harrison and John Lennon that eventually resultedin the famous Harrison produced ‘Radha Krishna Temple’ album.  The ‘Govindam’ prayers from this album are now played in ISKCON temples daily all over the world, and it was a real treat to accompany Yamuna devi’s devotion-filled, soulful singing.

We were also blessed to collaborate with many other friends in London, including Tulasi, jahnavai’s sister, who sang beautifully and played kartals; Jaggi, who also sang sweet harmonies and played electric guitar; the Subhadra dancers- four local young Bharatanatyam dancers who specially  choreographed a dance to ‘Hey Nath’; and our new dear friend Colin, whose crazy saxophone playing and infectious humour brightened every moment of our experience.

You can see more photos from the events courtesy of David Crick, who kindly sent us the links:

The Troxy – Saturday 21st November

view: http://davidc.zenfolio.com/troxy/slideshow

download: http://davidc.zenfolio.com/troxy

Soho Street – Sunday 22nd November

view: http://davidc.zenfolio.com/40years22ndnov/slideshow

download: http://davidc.zenfolio.com/40years22ndnov