Saturday, September 2nd, 2023
King City/Scarborough
Actually, my first place to visit was in the home of Parth and Tilak where family (I'm talking about three generations in one house) I stayed overnight and then worked for sadhana (spiritual practice). This sadhana entailed chanting in praise of guru and God followed by a point of discussion. Kunti praises Krishna in Canto One of the Bhagavatam as being the time factor. Time, more or less, rules us. Time features happiness and misery. Our discussion led to that. When time is well spent in devotion, the extremities of life subside.
Second visit was King City and the country home of the Prahser family. This family is a big one, large enough to justify a massive outdoor tent. We conducted a Chariot Fest on the 45th Avenue property. It seems that this event of wheels and ropes has really become a popular summer gathering. It was quite the task for people to learn the standard method of sravanam kirtanam, the call and response of chanting, but sincerity came through from the hearts.
My last stop for the day was in Scarborough at a Bengali Centre on Birchmount to honour Krishna's birth – Janmastami. I was impressed with this very educated and grounded group of people. They naturally have affection for our dear Prabhuapda, who was born in Kolkata, West Bengal. I took the liberty to say something he very much championed when it came to expressing the foundation of Vedic wisdom – "We are not these bodies. We are spirits. Renounce this bodily identity."
The audience seemed to like that.
MAY THE SOURCE BE WITH YOU!
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