Shree Krishna Haveli - From Dream to Reality

It has been an incredible adventure so far, and like all good adventures, there have been plenty of challenges along the way. But what has seen the Manor through all the trials and challenges is the loyalty and commitment of the wonderful temple community. It was with the community’s full support that the Manor succeeded to stay open when threatened with closure. But we have only just scratched the surface; the possibilities for the Manor are endless. And so another vision has emerged on the horizon. The construction of a glorious haveli for our community. The Manor community has grown beyond all expectations over the last four decades and we are fast running out of space to accommodate all our flourishing needs.
Where to start? An oversubscribed children’s Krishna club. Hundreds of Sunday guests regularly taking prasadam from a dining room that has capacity for fifty. Often to the point where they have to take prasadam outside in the rain! A lack of classrooms to teach our acclaimed courses to the growing number of students. With deity worship, dramas and prasadam serving all taking place in the same building, the Manor is practically chock-a-block, what to speak of the queues and navigating through the shoe room!
Once again the community’s crucial support is needed. We effectively have to develop a building complex containing two great gathering halls, state of the art classrooms and kitchens, a brand new reception, crèche, efficient storage facilities and more. All for the purpose of imparting priceless Vedic teachings and love of Krishna to each new generation. As Prabhupada blessed George Harrison back in 1973 for giving shelter to us, so too will he bless us with the eternal shelter of Lord Krishna for giving shelter to our next generation by building the Shree Krishna Haveli.
For over four decades the struggle for survival and the provision of needs for the community at Bhaktivedanta Manor has been inexorable. For the most part, the temple’s various needs over the years would be resolved by submitting piecemeal applications to the council; based on what the immediate necessity was. But all that was about to change with the opening of New Gokul in 2010. The local council requested a different approach from us. They wanted a master plan for Bhaktivedanta Manor that would cover the next ten to fifteen years. This forced us to undertake a complete evaluation of the Manor’s current needs with the help of consultants and the council’s strategic planning department.
The outcome of the research was that we required another 2000m2 of building to facilitate our basic needs. The next five to six years became a relentless series of committee meetings, consultations, council approvals, drawing up and redrawing of planning documents etc. Then at long last in 2016, planning permission was granted. During the process Cllr Harvey Cohen, the planning portfolio holder stated: “Bhaktivedanta Manor is an important site for ISKCON and the borough of Hertsmere with huge cultural, religious and historical significance.” For us, Prabhupada said the ‘future would be just overwhelming’. By Prabhupada’s grace this opportunity now stands before us to be part of Krishna’s ‘overwhelming’ plans by building the Shree Krishna Haveli.