Tuesday, 19 December 2017

Sunday, December 17th, 2017

Edmonton, Alberta

Suddenly

I was supposed to be in Miami this weekend, but, that being cancelled out, a window of opportunity opened up for going elsewhere.  In pronto fashion, divine intervention had it that I would not venture south, but west.  Bala Krishna, our leader in Edmonton, booked me right away.  It was an overnight red-eye flight from Toronto.  The last light piece of humour I recall before arriving at near 2:00 a.m. was a remark by a passenger behind me as she was wiggling her way into the seat. “Excuse my fat ass!”

There were two programs set up whereby I had the blessing to speak on the topic of bhakti-yoga; one was at the home of Adhokshaja, where a fabulous kirtan was held.  Harmonium, violin and tabla made it special.

The second—or rather first, in order—was my talk from Chapter 12 of the Gita.  Love these verses, 18 and 19.  “One who is equal to friends and enemies, who is equipoised in honour and dishonor, heat and cold, happiness and distress, fame and infamy, who is always free from contaminating association, always silent and satisfied with anything, who doesn’t care for any residence, who is fixed in knowledge and who is engaged in devotional service—such a person is very dear to Me (Bhagavan).”

It was a captive group of listeners, and I arranged for the youngsters to be in the front, close to me.  Successfully, from the speaker’s chair, we sold two hundred eighty-eight Bhagavad-gitas through the sponsorship program.

May the Source be with you!

5 km


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