Burnaby, British Columbia
Exam Preparation
At UBC a group of fifty to sixty young,
Indian students came together for a Hindu collaboration, which included mostly
devotional songs. It was indoors, Diwali-like in atmosphere, and timed just
before exams. Iskcon was invited, which became my inclusion. Someone from our
Burnaby community, by the name of Visudha Sattva, scheduled kirtan
chanting sessions at our temple. He sang and then had me slotted in for a turn.
Clearly, I could see our own boys, who are
great drummers, getting into the groove. Respectfully, those who weren’t so
familiar with our usual ISKCON style, listened but weren’t sure just when to
respond and join in. when it came my turn, I just asked everyone to stand up
(get out of sitar-playing sit-down mode) and readied everyone for some
movement. I thought that’s what everyone needed – some mobility. I asked
the boys to tap and get the rhythm going on the drums as I gave instructions
how to step and move.
All went well. Then the next step was to
incorporate the mantra and things began to gel. Everyone was activated.
Voices could be heard through those mesh-like masks. All were playing and
moving forward and back in a modified hokey-pokey style. It was fun. It was
engaging. It was a sweat. It was liked. My stiff knees liked it.
From there an appetite was built up and
everyone indulged in blessed food; Krishna prasadam. Good luck on all
the exams, participants.
May the Source be with you!
3 km
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