Early Days – the Start

In 1982, His Holiness Bir Krsna Das Goswami came to North Carolina with a desire to spread Krishna consciousness to please his spiritual master, Srila Prabhupada. This new center would give people the opportunity to understand the Vedic teachings based on the Bhagavad-gita and other Vedic literatures.

Maharaja chose the area and enlisted the help of Amitacara dasa and Mayapriya devi dasi to look for land. Once the five-acre wooded parcel was found, Maharaja and Amitacara cleared the driveway and temple site themselves. Construction of the first temple was carried out by Amitacara, Jaya dasa, and Lilaraja dasa, with help from other devotees who came for shorter periods. Mother Karuna single-handedly built Maharaja’s first small cabin in the woods.

Financial support in those lean early years came largely through the tireless efforts of Sarvatma dasa and Tulasi devi dasi. Tulasi went out day after day to distribute books at highway rest areas and the small local airport, while Sarvatma collected daily as well. Their efforts sustained the project until it could grow.

Life at New Goloka was simple and austere. The first temple was a used trailer riddled with rust and cockroaches, with only a picture on the small altar. Cracks in the walls exposed the sky and ground outside. Sunday gatherings were few, and prasadam—often cooked by Maharaja in his tiny trailer—was honored around a campfire. Devotees drew inspiration from a cardboard model of the planned dome temple, which gave hope for the future.

Despite opposition from some locals—who shot at devotees, tried to run them off the road, or even hung a dead deer from the temple sign—the community pressed on with determination. Mayapriya recalls painting the original sign, Krishna Priya and Renuka later enlivened the community with their service, and through everyone’s sacrifice, the project slowly grew.

Though those years were lean, they were filled with enthusiasm and devotion. Like the early days of New Vrindavan, New Goloka was established through hardship, vision, and unwavering dedication. From those beginnings arose the temple of Sri Sri Radha Golokananda that continues to flourish today.