Thursday 20 July 2017

Tuesday, July 18th, 2017

Thunder Bay, Ontario

At the Open Mine

Just east of Thunder Bay is the largest amethyst mine in North America.  It’s a purple gem, sometimes rusty red due to a strong iron content.  There is a scientific reasoning behind that rich colour but for now let’s stick to the legend.  While the bus crew went to prospecting, or picking and washing their individual pieces from the quarry, some of us meditated on this story.

“Millions of years ago, Bacchus, the god of wine, was angered at the insult of Man.  He vowed to let his man-eating tigers devour the first human they could catch.  A beautiful princess named Amethyst was traveling from Lake Superior to worship at Diana’s Grotto on the highest hilltop.  Hearing the tiger’s roar, she climbed up to Elbow Lake hoping to escape by canoe.  No canoe could be found so she quickly climbed into a nearby crystal cave and prayed for help.  The goddess Diana, hearing the maiden’s prayer, sealed the princess safely into the cave.  Bacchus, remorseful and ashamed, poured red wine on the cave thus freeing the princess.  The wine stained the crystals in the cave creating the beautiful gemstone Amethyst.”

Our crew of thirty-six collectively gathered over fifty pounds of the pretty gems, but I bet you that with all the outdoor activity, like that, we’ve lost pounds of flesh.  This is confirmed by one of our bus drivers, Dattatreya, who’s had twenty years of experience.  In fact, he said that the boys lose weight while the girls either sustain or add weight.  This point is confirmed by Datta’s wife, Radha.

The main point of this bus trip is to provide a full-on spiritual experience and reduce some karma that tends to drag us all down.

May the Source be with you!

4 km

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