Plaisance, Guyana
Sunday Chant-Walk
Today was the last of a four-day Padayatra,and this morning's final time period took us to Plaisance, through residential areas and a marketplace. It was a mere three-kilometre stretch, but then we moved rather slowly, with a vehicle—a flatbed truck—in front to carry water, and a speaker to amplify the sound of our kirtan. Next in line was the kirtan itself, comprised mostly of young men and women. Then finally in the procession was a smartly built, rope-pulled cart which sheltered the murtis,or images, of Chaitanya and Nityananda. That was it. Rather modest, but powerful, because our presence in Guyana is known through this walking festival.
Acknowledgement of Krishna monks is also known in Guyana for the annual Rathayatra, also a walking festival of sorts. And finally, we are quite visible to the public through television broadcasts.
As we paraded along, while singing together, we passed at least a half-dozen churches, in addition to a mosque. Some Christian services were in session—a marked difference from gatherings at pubs with Saturday-night-thumping music a few hours earlier.
Our walking party culminated at the ISKCON Centre near the University of Guyana. There we engaged in more chanting. I gave a class on twenty-six qualities of a virtuous human, followed by a diksha, initiation ceremony, for a farming couple. Their names are Damodar-lila and Radha-lila. They specialize in growing those long exotic beans which are delicious when cooked nicely.
I had a room full of young teens to twenty-year olds. We chatted about their issues. They were a great bunch.
May the Source be with you!
4 km
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