Toronto, Ontario
To Go Inside
Today is 20:2020. And it is not an ordinary day.
I announced to our small crew of monks that as of tomorrow,
there will be a shutdown of the temple, due to the coronavirus. “Oh yes, the
duty service will go on, the cooking and business as usual, but we will not be
able to welcome people, even the regular pujari’s (priests).
These words did not meet ears with surprise. Our resident
monks saw something like this coming, what with all that’s around us shutting
down. “The Ford auto plant in Oakville is closed. In Oshawa, General Motors is
closed,“ said one of our congregants. And he added, “All parking in Toronto is
free, but parking for what?“
Wow! What a surreal world we are living in. Extra-ordinary
times.
This mandatory carefulness is to last for two weeks—our
temple/ashram closing. The decision was not mine alone, but a group of
elders, medical professionals and temple leaders who had that conference call
and arrived at this point.
So, for most of us who reside in the ashram, we have the
freedom to get out, or to go outside. Dharma and Dakshin walk every day. So
does Gaurachandra, while Jai Sri cycles—all seniors.
Dwarkanath, our young cook, routinely runs. Corrado and I
walk. I’ll get cabin fever, if I don’t.
They ordered these days as “stay at home, work from home.“ But I’ve got to go
outside, and when I do, I go ‘inside’ with my fingers on my beads and the mantra
to the heart.
We walked to the edge of a cliff by a ravine and just sat
there “to go inside.“
May the Source be with you!
5 km
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