One noteworthy festival was the “Sunshine Pleasure Fair,” also known as the “Crater Festival.” It was perhaps one of the first of the Crater Festivals, called this because it was held inside Diamondhead Crater. Diamondhead Crater sits just above Waikiki, and is perhaps the best known landmark in Hawaii. It is an extinct volcano that looks very much like a diamond, Hawaii’s diamond, facing the ocean.
We pitched a small tent near the main thoroughfare, and set up a small altar with little Jagannatha Deities, a picture of Pancha Tattva, and Srila Prabhupada. Youths would wander through and we would give them some prasadam. We were becoming famous for our coconut laddu--a simple treat that was labor intensive, but very inexpensive to make. We had very little money, so we utilized whatever we had, and there were plenty of coconuts to be had!
Aside from the obvious natural beauty of Hawaii, this place has another type of specialness that eludes many who are not situated on the platform of goodness. Like Laguna Beach, Hawaii is a “chakra,” a place where yogis take birth. Those who come here that are more inclined to passionate pursuits often find themselves confused and in a lot of trouble. And they usually leave the Islands soon after. But those who by nature are yogis, or have a more sattvic nature, become quite peaceful and transcendental in these Islands.
Moreover, Honolulu is perhaps the most central pivot of tourism for the whole world. On a regular basis, people come here from all over the world, stay a week or two, and take back home with them whatever they have received--a magazine, a book, or just hearing the Holy Names of Krishna.
Over 7 million people visit this Island every year, and mostly they are not the same people, but different groups. This constant flux of people makes Hawaii one of the prime preaching places in the world. Whereas most cities have the same residents, and some amount of tourists, Hawaii has new people coming and going every day!
Since Hawaii is perhaps the biggest and most important military base in the Pacific, having all four arms of the Military, there is a constant stream of coming and going in that area as well.
In addition to the military and tourism, there are a number of Universities, most notably the University of Hawaii, with its East West Center. Even the books of Srila Bhaktivinode Thakur were lodged in the East West Center libraries long before Srila Prabhupada came to America.
Then of course, there is Waikiki, the place where all tourists gather. In the early days of our preaching work in Hawaii, Samkirtan on the streets of Waikiki was an everyday affair.
We had a daytime chanting party in downtown Honolulu, and an evening chanting party on the sidewalks of WaikikiAnd Samkirtan, as in “Glory to the Sri Krishna Samkirtan which cleanses the heart....,” from Lord Chaitanya’s Sikshastak, had one meaning only: Congregational chanting of the Holy Names, Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna, Krishna, Hare Hare. Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare. No one had yet coined a new meaning for the word Samkirtan