The End of the Beginning of MANTRA

2 days ago

2 min read

Sunday, October 4th, 2026

Moundsville, West Virginia

The MANTRA retreat came to an end today at 1:30 pm with a marvelous feast. That icing on the cake with the cherry on top, or what preceded the eating, was a very strong, bonding kirtan chanting session. The men who were there at the Yogashala delighted in that last kirtan which was embellished by amazing dance moves. I got some good footsteps in, and as put by Ekavira “sonatic shakes,” a way of shrugging off negativity, of which our current world is full of.

What a blast — a bhakti blast!

I was very happy about one of the men who came up from Tampa, Florida, to attend, but he also came for a second purpose. I’ve known Arjuna for a few years now and together we worked out that he would receive his first diksha or initiation. He was deserving and has been a practitioner for quite some time. He is a second generation devotee and has a nice service attitude. I see him regularly on the phone with our Thursday Gita zoom calls at 5 to 6pm. All are invited to that exhilarating study group. (Call me for the link).

With a name like Arjuna (a name I love) I felt a bit uneasy about giving him a new name because the name “Arjuna” is so perfect. However, it hit my mind — why not consider the name “Avatar”? It starts with an “A” and the very word encompasses something very powerful. Avatar refers to an advanced being and can even refer to God, who descends to this worldly existence to raise the consciousness of us lowly selves. Congratulations Avatar Das.