That’s (mundane) Life
Toronto, Ontario
I turned a corner at Roxborough and Yonge where just outside of a coffee shop, “Second Cup” two dogs were mating. The dog’s owner (or owners) must have been sipping away inside allowing nature to take its own course outside.
Further south a man glimpsed at my robes. He was about sixtyish, introduced himself, and told me he goes to Puskara, India, every year. I didn’t bother to ask whether it was for a spiritual venture or for beach fun and beach dope. I merely jumped to my conclusion; that his intent was less spiritual otherwise he would have prolonged the conversation. Oh well! He’s on his own track. Maybe, next he’ll plunge into the spiritual side of life. At least he was nice.
I ended up on Queen St. pass Old City Hall which architecturally puts New City Hall to shame. Pedestrian traffic is everywhere, uncongested, evenly-spread but moving. 25% of walkers are on I-pods. Maybe 5% are munching or seriously devouring. Two people have an argument. A street person is in slumber. Everyone has his or her own intent/purpose.
I guess I’m seeing it all -- eating, sleeping, mating and defending. In Sanskrit the terms are ahara (eating), nidra (sleeping), bhaya(defending), and maithuni(mating). All of this seen over the course of 75 minutes on a rectangular route on a Toronto grid from Yonge to Queen, to Spadina and Dupont back to the ashram. This is all a visualization of what I read about. It is like the pages of the books we read. The graphic and yet ordinary goings-on of secular living becomes manifest at every step you take. Whether dog or man, such is life as it goes on in the mundane sense.
7 Km
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