This is the sacred month of Damodar (also known as Kartik) on the Vaisnava lunar calendar. It comes every year in October-November. It is a very spiritual month when devotees are encouraged to go to Vrindavan, India to spend the entire month engaged in devotional service in Lord Sri Krishna's sweet transcendental abode. For those who cannot go to Sri Vrindavan Dham it is advised to create a very spiritual, Vrindavan-like atmosphere in their place of residence. They should try to attend their nearest ISKCON temple as much as possible where the singing of the Damodarastakam prayers are sung every evening along with a ceremony of everyone offering a small candle or ghee wick before the Deity.  If one cannot get to the evening program at the temple one can sing Damodarastakam and offer a candle at home. The Damodarastakam is as follows:
?r? D?modar?s?aka
Text One
nam?m??vara? sac-cid-?nanda-r?pa?
lasat-ku??ala? gokule bhr?jamanam
ya?od?-bhiyol?khal?d dh?vam?na?
par?m?s?am atyantato drutya gopy?
To the Supreme Lord, whose form embodies eternity, knowledge, and bliss, whose earrings swing to and fro, who shines beautifully in Gokula, who quickly ran from the grinding mortar in fear of mother Ya?od?, and who was caught from behind by her, who ran faster than He--to that Supreme Lord, ?r? D?modara, I offer my humble obeisances.
Text Two
rudanta? muhur netra-yugma? m?jantam
kar?mbhoja-yugmena s?ta?ka-netram
muhu? ?v?sa-kampa-trirekh??ka-ka??ha-
sthita-graiva? d?modara? bhakti-baddham
[Upon seeing His mother's stick,] He cried and rubbed His eyes again and again with His two lotus hands. His eyes were fearful, and His quick breathing shook the strand of pearls on His neck, which bore three lines like a conchshell's. To that Supreme Lord, ?r? D?modara, whose belly is bound with the ropes of His mother's pure love, I offer my humble obeisances.
Text Three
it?d?k sva-l?l?bhir ?nanda-ku??e
sva-ghosa? nimajjantam ?khy?payantam
tad?yesita-jñesu bhaktair jitatva?
puna? prematas ta? ?at?v?tti vande
With these superexcellent childhood pastimes Lord K?ñ?a drowned the residents of Gokula in pools of ecstasy. In this way He declared to those absorbed in knowledge of His majesty and opulence: "I am conquered only by My pure loving devotees." With great love I again offer my obeisances to Lord D?modara hundreds and hundreds of times.
Text Four
vara? deva moksa? na moks?vadhi? v?
na canya? v??e 'ha? vares?d ap?ha
ida? te vapur n?tha gop?la-b?la?
sad? me manasy ?vir?st?? kim anyai?
O Lord, though You can award all kinds of benedictions, I pray to You neither for the boon of impersonal liberation, nor for the highest liberation of eternal life in Vaiku??ha, nor for any other such boon. O Lord, I simply wish that this form of Yours as B?la Gop?la in V?nd?vana may ever be manifest in my heart, for what use do I have for any other boon besides this?
Text Five
ida? te mukh?mbhojam atyanta-n?lair
v?ta? kuntalai? snigdha-raktai? ca gopy?
muhu? cumbita? bimba-rakt?dhara? me
manasy ?vir?st?m ala? laksa-l?bhai?
O Lord, again and again mother Ya?od? kisses Your lotus face, which is framed by locks of soft black hair tinged with red and beautified by Your lips colored red like the bimba fruit. May this vision of Your lotus face be ever manifest in my heart. Thousands and thousands of other benedictions are of no use to me.
Text Six
namo deva d?modar?nanta vis?o
pras?da prabho du?kha-j?l?bdhi-magnam
k?p?-d?s?i-v?s?y?ti-d?na? bat?nu
g?h??esa m?m ajñam edhy aksi-d??ya?
O Supreme Godhead, I offer my respectful obeisances unto You. O D?modara! O Ananta! O Viñ?u! O master! O Lord, be pleased upon me. Shower me with Your merciful glances and deliver this poor ignorant fool immersed in an ocean of worldly sorrows, and become visible to my eyes.
Text Seven
kuver?tmajau baddha-m?rtyaiva yadvat
tvay? mocitau bhakti-bh?jau k?tau ca
tath? prema-bhakti? svak?? me prayaccha
na mokse graho me 'sti d?modareha
O Lord D?modara, as a baby tied to a grinding mortar, You delivered Kuvera's two sons from the curse of N?rada and made them into great devotees. In the same way, please give me pure loving devotion for You. I long for this alone and have no desire for any kind of liberation.
Text Eight
namas te 'stu d?mne sphurad-d?pti-dh?mne
tvad?yodar?y?tha vi?vasya dh?mne
namo r?dhik?yai tvad?ya-priy?yai
namo 'nanta-l?l?ya dev?ya tubhyam
O Lord D?modara, obeisances unto the brilliantly effulgent rope binding Your belly! Obeisances unto Your belly, the abode of the entire universe! Obeisances unto Your dearmost beloved, ?r?mat? R?dh?r???! And obeisances unto You, O Lord, who display unlimited pastimes!
To learn the melody attend your nearest ISKCON temple as much as possible this month.
