Gold, Guns and God: Vol. 8—The City of God
A Biography of Swami Bhaktipada and a History of the West Virginia New Vrindaban Hare Krishna Community in Ten Volumes by Henry Doktorski
Cover page of the New Vrindaban Hymnal (1992).
I had composed most of the music for the morning, noon and evening temple services by the end of 1988. I had a music printing computer program, probably Finale, and I printed some of the music, basically for personal use, for Radha Vrindaban Chandra Swami, my assistant organist, and also to help me while writing out parts for the orchestral instrument players who came in 1991, including the harps, accordions, strings and brass players.
By 1992, our service music had been standardized for the most part. (Although I had rewritten sections of Gurudev and added a new finale, we never got to learn it and play it.) I decided to print out a 20-page hymnal for guests who might like to play our New Vrindaban temple music at home. The hymnal, which cost $10.95 and was offered for sale at the Palace and temple gift shops, included the words and music to (1) The Processional, (2) Prayers to the Spiritual Masters, (3) Tulasi Prayers, (4) Pancha Tattva and Maha Mantras, (5) Gurudev, (6) Prayer to Lord Nrsimha, (7) Vrindaban’s Woods and Groves, (8) All Creatures of our God and King, and (9) The Siksastaka Prayers. For some reason or other, the evening aroti song was omitted.
Sometime in 1994 (the same year the English temple services were terminated) I received in the mail a cassette tape of a recording by an amateur pianist from Ithaca, New York: Bob Jones. Bob was an acquaintance, a co-worker with Josette (Joyous) Garrison, who was a Bhaktipada disciple and friend of New Vrindaban. (Josette’s husband wrote the Foreword to Gold, Guns and God, Vol. 8.) Josette (and her husband Patrick) had recently visited New Vrindaban and purchased my hymnal. They liked the temple music, and Josette asked Bob to read the hymnal and play the music, while Josette recorded it on her cassette recorder/player. Bob played the entire morning and noon service music on his piano, so that Josette could “listen to the music for inspiration.” Handwritten on the card inside the plastic cassette case Josette wrote: “Bob Jones, piano, playing New Vrindaban Hymnal. Ithaca, NY 1994.”
To listen to Bob Jones’ piano rendition of the New Vrindaban temple service music, Click Here.
Contents page from the New Vrindaban Hymnal (1992).
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