Sunday, June 15th, 2008

Sunday, June 15th, 2008 - Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada

Over the weekend I met a host of interesting folks. Sebastian is a Spanish man who discovered Krishna. He informed me that he was formerly a Catholic priest but wanted marriage so he left the order to explore other avenues. He came upon devotees and fell in love with chanting.

Another young chap is a close relative to our dear god-brother know well to many of us monks world-wide as 'The Jolly Swami'. Sridhar Swami was a Canadian born soul-searching fellow who became captivated by the philosophy of Krishna Consciousness. The unique thing about him was his great wealth of jokes and good humour. We were sorry to see him leave his body just five years ago in India. Sridhar's young cousin is now in the phase of his life searching for a deeper meaning and I saw in him what his Jolly Swami cousin must have been like four decades ago - young and full of wonder.

I saw a young woman of 23 for the first time since her being a toddler. Her mother had her living in our temple but left to feel out what the world had to offer. She came back full circle more recently with the daughter bright and intelligent.

I mean the encounter with people was all positive. While on a chanting session on the grass at Central Park, a Chinese fellow was drawn to ask questions. The best spot to be in the world is not necessarily the grass and fine sun above, but where you are asked to be a teacher even just for a few minutes.

7km