Not Welcome
Thunder Bay, Ontario
Boulevard Lake is a very popular body of water, spring fed, then dammed before its waters reach Lake Superior. The locals boat in it and runners and walkers circumambulate it. Our visiting troupe of actors and singers walked the hour trek while taking in the maha-mantra which is a commitment we have all made for life. I have been doubting the global warming theory for some time and today, like other recent days, are just below average temperature. Our Israeli members with us have come to understand the need to walk with some gusto.
The balance of our day was indoors at Lakehead University practicing for the drama "The Witness" the story of a walking stone deity. How fast this sacred image moved on foot is unknown to me but the lake does most definately express the power of a deity. We can draw no limits to the various ways in which the Divine can be manifest. This deity now stationary has His home in a town in Orissa, India. I had every intention of viewing this famous deity back in the ninties. Unfortunately there are limitations to viewing by the public! Because I was classified as "gauri" (white) I was not permitted to have darshan (a viewing). It was a bit disappointing after taking a 22 kilometer trek from Puri to get to the temple of the Shakshi Gopal deity and to be refused entry because of skin color.
You will find traces of racial discrimination in parts of India even if you are a full-fledged monk and you have the robes and the life-style to prove it.
If our guru, Srila Prabhupada, demonstrated such prejudice when he initiated his soceity in the sixties then people like me would not have stood the chance to develop and spread the consciousness of Krishna. He was open-hearted about those who were seeking. He gave people a chance.
6 Km
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