Prema Mala: A Garland of Poems, Prayers and Meditations on Love, Paperback/Acyuta Gopi

"No one has to tell a rose To spread its fragrance. We are sparks of splendor. Time to do what comes naturally. Rise and shine." Prema Mala is a journey through the heart and the various feelings found there. A compilation of poems, prayers and meditations based on teachings in the Bhakti tradition, this is a book that, hopefully, will not only be read, but ingested, taken into the heart and breathed into the soul. There are moments of triumphant connection and moments of despair that bond the reader and writer until they become linked in a sacred ritual of sorts with Supreme Love at its center. Writer and reader become a part of one soul tribe, each story and thought acknowledging that all of us, are in this together, attempting to navigate this great thing called life. With poems and stories on everything from yoga to spirituality, to despair and even struggles with race, this is not just one writer's story, but it is the story of the soul striving to make the ultimate offering of love to Love. About the Author: Acyuta Gopi was born two months premature, and from that very moment, kirtan, prayer and faith became the major themes of her life. At less than ten inches long and weighing in at a mere one and a half pounds, it was uncertain whether or not she would live, but while she was being nursed and nourished physically inside an incubator, her parents nourished her soul daily by singing devotional songs to her and reciting every prayer they knew. Their intense level of devotion would form the foundation for her whole existence. Just as kirtan, and devotional songs were an integral part of who she was, so were the philosophical teachings of Bhakti. By the time she was eight, she knew for certain that she wanted to write for her Beloved Krishna. Having worshipped the world famous deities of Sri Sri Radha Govinda in New York since birth, she was drawn to the pastimes and glories of Govinda and before long, her own spiritual teacher, Radhanath Swami, as well as others, would encourage her to share what she had been quietly cultivating. It is with the blessings and love of her family and Gurudeva that she now hopes to offer a kind of literary kirtan for those who are similarly drawn to God and their relationship with Him. Her kirtans all over the world have often been described as powerful, energetic, packed with feeling and unforgettable, and she hopes that her writing will have the same impact on readers and seekers of Love.