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On 13 February 2005, the 3rd patotsav celebration of the BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir in Auckland began with the morning arti at 7.00 am followed by mahapuja at 8.00 am in which about 150 devotees participated. Priest Shri Nitinbhai conducted the mahapuja rituals and prayed for world peace and progress of devotees. The pujan of the new flags for the mandir was also performed during the mahapuja, and after that the old flags were replaced with the new ones.
At 10.00 am abhishek of Shri Harikrishna Maharaj was performed by devotees in the shrine. Around 300 devotees offered the abhishek of the Lord with saffron-scented water. Then the grand annakut of 111 pure vegetarian food items was arranged before the deities. After the youths had sung the thal at 11.30 am, the patotsav arti was performed at 12.00 noon.
The evening Vasant Panchmi assembly began at 4.30 pm with dhun and prarthana. Thereafter, there were speeches on the significance of Shri Akshar Purushottam philosophy, the work done by Brahmaswarup Shastriji Maharaj, the significance of the Shikshapatri and following the niyams given by Bhagwan Shri Swaminarayan.
Also, the youths, kishores and balaks presented an excellent performance of ‘Yagnapurush Sukhkari’ – a special dance-drama depicting the life and work of Shastriji Maharaj.
The celebration was attended by over 700 devotees.