Cultivation
It is
almost alarming to see the intensity of traffic this early Saturday morning on
secondary roads, not freeways. Who are these people? Where are they going at 6
AM and with such speed and intensity of purpose? On a Saturday? You can’t help
asking these questions.
Karuna and
I spent most of the journey, now west of Hartford ,
on Highway 4 through Farmington and then beyond Burlington
Occasionally,
a motorist on the busy road honks his horn. You can tell when it’s a happy honk
as distinct from a ‘watch it man’ type of warning. It’s rare to find nasty
travelers as long as you walk responsibly. I still find it astounding to see
the lack of ample space for alternative travelers like walkers. It appears that
all is laid out to the advantage of the automobile.
What does
compensate for the more or less little interaction with motorists is the time I
spent with newcomer, Tre’von. I find him exceptional, devotionally a rare bird.
I spent the evening with him after his work hours in what our guru used
to call, ‘cultivation’. This is a word Srila Prabhupada used to use to describe
someone’s preparation in devotion.
When I was
a boy growing up in a farming district, the term cultivation was used to mean
ploughing or turning the soil by way of machinery. I believe it’s an
appropriate word as Tre’von is really having a turnover in life. My support
person, Vivasvan, is also helping him learn the ways of bhakti,
devotion. I can see Tre’von’s head spinning around in a most positive way. I
explained to him, “Just look at it this way”, as cars are whipping by, “we are
not these bodies but spirits. The body perishes. Our souls go on. We can get
over our identity crisis by concentrating on the point, 'I am spirit'".
Tre’von
liked that.
Regards to
Madhava and Vishali for accommodation.
20 miles /
32 kilometres
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