A PASSION CAME TO PASS

Friday, August 28th, 2026

High Park, Toronto

We all have our passions. I have one and I am entitled to it. Yes, even a Krishna monk can have something to be crazy about. If one is alive it means you have drive. So, enough of the silence. I’ll break it by saying I like rhythm and music. The type that makes people move. I’m talking about kirtan. The sun was out. The grass green. The trees were happy.

High Park was on my mind. A few lovers of kirtan and some musical instruments need placing in the van with some gas in the tank and we are good to go. Twenty minutes later, departing from our ashram in mid-town Toronto and we have arrived. Oh, and a second vehicle with enthusiasts tagged along.

Out come the usual mrdunga drum, a harmonium, but also a djembe, and for the first time at the jack pine tree by High Park’s entrance came a didgeridoo. Oops! I forgot to mention a gourd shaker. With our devotional clothing and such exotic instruments I think we looked just fine.

After the kirtan began, and several of the guys attempted the didgeridoo, the sound and the circle of lotus-positioned, attention was given by the pedestrians. One man, a former lawyer, came by, chanted, then wanted to talk. He expressed he was not fulfilled in the legal arena but in the philanthropic sector — yes. He had heard about bhakti. I suggested it is the best brand of tea available. It was a good chat within our chant.

To finish our time at High Park, Jiva and Nityananda posed while in the jack pine.

MAY THE SOURCE BE WITH YOU

14,444 FOOTSTEPS