Tirupati, India
So Long Souls
The last day in Tirupati stirred up emotions for Victor, Yamala
Arjuna, and myself, as well as the sannyasi and brahmacari monks who have also been
visiting here. Then, of course, there were
Revati Raman—the main manager here—and the resident monastics, who also felt
the same. We had gotten to know each
other through the activity of bhakti/devotional service. It was going to be hard to depart. Victor and I, along with our assistant,
Balaji, would soon be en-route to Chennai. Later, Victor would travel on a flight to Delhi,
while Balaji would eventually return with the cab driver back to Tirupati; I would be carrying on to Frankfurt and
Toronto. Our respective destinations would all have the same thing awaiting us—service. https://www.instagram.com/p/B3wFAO6AVeo/?igshid=1t0h1vwvaerax
Those last few minutes had me immersed in reading from the book Chaitanya
Bhagavat, which covers the three phases of Chaitanya's life. His charisma, physical attractiveness, divine
words and rhythmic moves had everyone stunned.
Radical Muslims also took a liking to Him. On His travels, His entrance into a district
meant that all those villagers of the area would cease their duties to come and
see the celebrity. Upon His exit and
onward travels, newly-made friends would feel the weight of separation.
Similarly, our connecting and disconnecting with such sweet souls was
somewhat hard to bear in Tirupati. All
the good times will be stored as good memories. They will remain as a hankering
for some future reunion.
But at those moments of departure, "Obeisances!" And as we
traditionally say in our greeting and parting with one another:
Vancha kalpatarubhyas ca / krpa sindhubhya eva ca / Patitanam
pavanebhyo / Vaishnavebhyo namo namah
Translation: "I offer my respectful obeisances unto all the
Vaisnava devotees of the Lord. They can
fulfill the desires of everyone, just like desire trees, and they are full of
compassion for the fallen souls."
May the Source be with you!
3 km
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