Roxborough St., Toronto
Gabriel
Gabriel is from a small town in
Ontario – St. Mary’s – and he now resides in Toronto while making the effort to
be with us on a daily basis, in the morning. He comes in through the door after
leaving his shoes in the designated shoe room before entering the large temple
room. He then offers his prostrations before the deity of Prabhupada, our guru.
After fetching a sitting mat, he
plants himself firmly on it; sitting squarely in a close-to-lotus position.
With beads in a bag, he fingers through the tulasi-wood beads, chanting japa.
“Japa” is a word found in
the ancient text, Bhagavad-gita, and it becomes intrinsic in the
regulation of a devotee’s life. It can, in fact, be his life-line.
Gabriel was asked about his
consciousness with Krishna and he answered saying, “There are many aspects to
the life-style that are particularly appealing. Especially japa
chanting.” With those beads of 108 in number, he focuses on chanting the mantra
for deliverance.
Gabriel is a great tambourine
player and, at the time of kirtan, chanting, he let’s loose with the
instrument adding a great dimension to the overall devotional sound. After the kirtan
chanting, he relishes listening to the daily class on the book, Bhagavatam.
He always asks a question or comments on the talk, which indicates his keen
interest in the philosophy. I also know that eating a great breakfast at the
end of the morning program is a grand finale for him. It tops it off.
May the Source be with you!
1 km
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