Ottawa, Ontario
Generous devotees had me come to Canada's capital for the 145th birthday of the nation. How we play and contribute into the party is, well, guess? Yes, we chant. Quite near to the large war memorial and the Parliament Buildings, is allocated an area for a humble stage and awning for us Hare Krishna's to hold kirtan, chanting. We go at vibrating Krishna's name for six hours at that spot, attempting to delight crowds. That we seem to accomplish. Phillip's lead guitar blends in to the chant so well.
A second instalment of kirtan chanting is less of a stationary approach. In fact, our enthusiastic group of chanters worked the crowds, so to speak, moving in a snake like fashion. The response was phenomenal. While going in motion we tended to collect more and more people. If I use the term "movers and shakers" in a colloquial way to describe such takers you would then appreciate that they were dancing up a storm.
In such instances I always feel a concern for such a build up of followers. With crowds on Sussex Drive near the Parliament, you can imagine the security that this event warrants. We will be chanting away, drums are beating, young folks shout a version of mantras. It escalates to a kind of frenzy. As we approach a group of police you can see the puzzle on their faces. They can see that we are stirring up excitement but that we are virtually harmless. So, they let us pass and do our thing.
Days such as this - a nation's birthday, or New Years Eve or the day your city wins the game - are times of crowd arousement. That's what we were happily caught in. We are there on a day off, on a day that is special to the public and when people may have downed a beer or two and put themselves in a temporary state of elation. We are there to deliver the mantra.
That's what I was saying at mantra intervals, "We are chanting mantras for the country. Mantras for the nation,"
10 Km
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