rathera sÄjani dekhi' loke camatkÄra
nava hemamaya ratha — sumeru-ÄkÄra
rathera - of the car; sÄjani - decoration; dekhi' - by seeing; loke - everyone; camatkÄra - astonished; nava - new; hema-maya - golden; ratha - car; sumeru-ÄkÄra - as high as the mountain Sumeru.
In the year 1973 there was a gorgeous Ratha-yÄtrÄ festival in London, England, and the car was brought to Trafalgar Square. The London daily newspaper The Guardian published a front-page photo caption: “ISKCON Ratha-yÄtrÄ is rival to the Nelson Column in Trafalgar Square.†The Nelson Column is a very impressive statue of Lord Nelson and can be seen from a good distance. Just as the residents of PurÄ« compared the Ratha-yÄtrÄ car to Mount Sumeru, the residents of London considered the car rival to the Nelson Monument.