Saturday 21 December 2019

Wednesday, December 11th, 2019

Varadero, Cuba

It's a Sin Not to Go to the Beach

As soon as our shoes hit the sand, we kicked them off and went our barefoot way.  Then we met the water, and in our store-bought trunks went the distance to the sandbar where it was shallow.

Yadunendan Swami, Prana Gauranga, and myself sat in the lotus position, with the water at chest level, and began chanting the various aspects of our morning sadhana.  The guruvastakam, the guru vandanam, and, of course, the maha mantra

The public beach-goers, many of them Russian, thought our presentation different.  Prana's kartals (sweet hand symbols) provided a unique flavour.  "My experience tells me that fish don't like the high pitch sound of those, " I told Prana.  I'm not sure what they do for sharks. 

The beaches were filled up and the sun now touched us with oncoming intensity.  My companions went off for monk duties while I stuck to a walking regimen, which was different that day, because of the sand below me and the salty water next to me. 

I walked by numerous tourists, many with families, and I thought about whether I had any personal regret to saying "no" to married life, kids and so on.  The answer is a resounding, "No!"  I'm happy and grounded in my lifestyle.  I love it.  I must see these people as brothers and sisters.  I keep forgetting I'm older than most.  That makes me like a parent or grandparent to some of them.  I believe that's the direction we all should be going.  We are a universal family and we should remain harmonious in all our  endeavours. 


May the Source be with you!
5 km

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