UPDATED: Ashram and Mandir Closed and Hanuman Jayanti Cancelled (Covid-19)

Cancellation of Hanuman Jayanti Festival and Ashram Closing due to the Covid-19 Pandemic. 

Update: In response to the latest recommendation from the state of New Mexico, the ashram has made the difficult call to fully close the ashram and mandir to all guests at this time. We will continue to monitor the situation and will provide an update around April 9th. More details here.

Summary:

Hanuman Jayanti Cancelled: We have made the difficult call to cancel the Hanuman Jayanti festival (scheduled for April 3-5th). There will be no gatherings at the ashram for this event and no meals or prasad served. Ashram Closing: Effective Monday, March 16th the Ashram will be closed, following recommendations by the state to limit social contact and cancel all gatherings over 100 people.

• • There will be no chai served, no prasad meals, and no community kirtan or seva projects. 
  • There will be no access to the sunroom, kitchen, and sunroom bathrooms. If you would like to have darshan in the Maharaj-ji’s Darshan Hall, please ask a caretaker and we will grant you access.  
  • The mandir and mandir bathrooms will remain open, but we are strongly recommending that devotees limit their time at the ashram and that out-of-state, sick, or high-risk individuals not travel to the ashram at this time. 
  • Do not visit if you are feeling ill. Seek medical attention as needed and avoid situations where you could infect others.
  • We will have limited, to-go dry prasad available in the mandir vestibule, no other meals will be served.

Livestream of aartis: 7:00 A.M. and 7:00 P.M. aartis will be livestreamed, watch at home here: https://livestream.com/NeemKaroliBabaAshram/events/7546503Sanitation Procedures: In the past weeks, we have introduced new sanitation and food safety procedures to help ensure the health of the satsang. We will be disinfecting all high-touch surfaces in the mandir and bathrooms multiple times a day and reducing areas of contact where the virus can be transmitted.

Letter from Ashram's General Manager: 

Dear Satsang,As a result of the rapidly evolving situation with Covid-19 and the recent state of emergency declared in New Mexico, the ashram has made the difficult call to cancel the upcoming Hanuman Jayanti celebration. This decision was not made lightly. While we would love to celebrate with all of you, the recommendations from government officials and our responsibility to public health and the wellbeing of our satsang has meant making this difficult call. In addition to cancelling Hanuman Jayanti, the ashram will be cancelling all community gatherings for the foreseeable future. Starting on Monday, March 16th, the ashram will no longer be serving chai, lunch or dinner prasad and will not be hosting Tuesday, Saturday, or Sunday kirtan and prasad. The sunroom and ashram kitchen will be closed to guests and we will not be accepting reservations in the dharmsala at this time (if you have an existing reservation, we will reach out with more information).The mandir and mandir bathrooms will remain open for Maharaj-ji and Hanuman-ji darshan and we will have limited to-go dry chana (chickpea) prasad available. We are strongly recommending that devotees limit their time at the ashram and that out-of-state, sick, or high-risk individuals not travel to the ashram at this time. Since we are cancelling all in-person gatherings at the ashram, we will be streaming the 7:00 A.M. MST and 7:00 P.M. MST aartis so devotees can connect with Maharaj-ji and Hanuman-ji from home. These changes will be in place until the Covid-19 virus is contained and the recommendations from the government and health officials change. Over the past couple of weeks we have introduced new sanitation and food safety procedures to help ensure the health of the satsang. Notably, we will be disinfecting all high-touch surfaces in the mandir and bathrooms multiple times a day during this time and reducing areas of contact where the virus can be transmitted. We are also exploring additional ways to improve sanitation and safety, which will remain in place even after this virus is contained to keep the community safe. We will provide updates on our website, Facebook page, and through email as the situation unfolds. By His grace we will all be healthy and through this pandemic quickly. We are hopeful that we will see many of you in July for Guru Purnima and Ram Dass’ Celebration of Life. Please visit our website at nkbashram.org to view the aarti livestreams starting Monday, March 16th, to support the ashram with an online donation, or to purchase any puja items from the Puja Dukan. If you have any questions, you can email feedback@nkbashram.org.Under His blanket and with love,Jeffrey Breau Devotee and Sevak (in the role of General Manager)