Tuesday 27 January 2009

Monday, January 26th, 2009

Buxton, Guyana

It was in Buxton a year ago today that racial tension struck hard in this small bedroom community of Georgetown. The army was forced to step in to resolve a merciless shooting of children in their sleep. Things have relaxed somewhat since then. It was only appropriate that the Padayatra (festival on foot) was initiated today and under the theme of peace and unity. The response was generally favourable.

As a classy shaped cart was pulled by foot-festival-participants, people came out onto their balconies to view. It was not exactly like balconies of the aristocracy. Rather, many homes are built on stilts. The homes are the balconies. Some folks actually came to the roadside to receive some small token of sweets. It was not just humans that expressed excitement. Cows, horses, goats, and pigs picked up on the resonating sounds of drums, cymbals, and chants. In that sense humans and the fury domesticates share space quite closely in Guyana.

A portion of our route occupied one lane of the two-lane coastal highway. Exposure of the exotic cart was great as it enshrined the glowing images of Caitanya and Nitai, two revered visionaries of medieval India who demonstrated no differences as to one’s ancestral background. In other words, their message of goodwill, bhakti – the devotional path, was an open door pathway for all. In addition to the Padayatra program, Rupa from New York and I tackled 20 kilometres on foot headed east of Georgetown. It is the third country that I’m fixed to walk across after Canada and Ireland. My dream is to roam the globe.

20km

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