Mayapura, India
Elephant On the Loose
Every Saturday night in Mayapura, there is what's called the
Hati Fest which is when the two elephants, Vishnupriya and Laksmipriya, have
their procession through the crowds.
Saturday night is a busy night, drawing pilgrims from all over Bengal
and the world. https://www.instagram.com/p/B8lWnTSgelX/?igshid=x1fj5vz3w6pk
It was during these last two days, at the ILS event, when I
felt like an elephant in a crowd of multitudes.
There is this massive banquet hall, constructed like they do for all
Indian weddings, done-up quite magnificently, with walls and ceilings of bamboo
and cloth, and chandeliers to give it that elegant touch.
This banquet hall fills up with perhaps one of the largest
group of vegetarian/vegan/prasadam-arians. There is one mandate that we
sannyasis are required to execute, and that is to walk through the line-up of
tables and just greet everyone. So
that's what I've been doing at meal-time.
Seeing representatives from the U.S., Europe, Russia, South America,
Australia etc. and even China, is quite a thrill. It is an honour and a pleasure. And, of course, all those enjoying the food
are reciprocating with the brief visit that both Gopal Bhatta, the organizer,
and I are making.
However, there was one person from Hyderabad who is very
active in the ISKCON mission, and he asked me to stop walking and
visiting. He sat me down and asked me to
talk about how I went about doing my marathon walks. The reason?
He wants to do something like that in India. A friend of his joined us, a support-type,
and they were intrigued, dreaming, and pensive of mind, as I spoke about
methodology, adventure and enlightenment.
May the Source be with you!
5 km
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