Rejection/Acceptance
Toronto, Ontario
Yesterday when our small party of 6 went in procession south on Avenue Road, a well dressed man in his, my guess, 60’s, addressed us as idiots. We didn’t respond. We were chanting and playing instruments while in procession. I was a little irritated by the remark, but left the negativity behind me, and immersed myself in blissful chanting. From thereon, responses by the public were phenomenal. When I described brief negative encounters to a group at a devotional gathering in a Markham home, they were rather surprised. “Someone would call some saintly folks idiots?”
Rejection is to be expected. So is acceptance. Accept both. This world is dual.
In a beautiful pastime to do with Krishna’s friends, these cowherd boys were somewhat disappointed when they were refused food for Krishna when requesting some from Brahmin priests. One time a reporter asked our guru, Srila Prabhupada, “How do you deal with a world that sometimes rejects you?” He made a remark that you simply go on with what has to be done. There can be so many discouraging factors to deal with. It is our dharma, or duty, to keep us on track, even though rejection may be in the air.
Now, there’s this annual event in the city called “Nuit Blanche” where streets are blocked off for pedestrian friendliness. Art displays go on into the wee hours of the morning. It’s quite the party. Well, after our Markham program, a group of us, 20 or so, decided to wedge ourselves into Nuit Blanche with our drums, deities, conch shells, incense, balloons, and anything else artistically expressive. It was done. Boy! How we were accepted! People loved it.
8 Km
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