26.06.2015 Views

An Authentic Life 1.1 for pdf - Universalist Radha-Krishnaism

An Authentic Life 1.1 for pdf - Universalist Radha-Krishnaism

An Authentic Life 1.1 for pdf - Universalist Radha-Krishnaism

SHOW MORE
SHOW LESS

Create successful ePaper yourself

Turn your PDF publications into a flip-book with our unique Google optimized e-Paper software.

Native residents of Vrindaban were born and<br />

raised there, but many people, especially abandoned<br />

widows, came from other parts of India, especially<br />

Bengal where many follow Krishna Chaitanya. Old<br />

pilgrims come to Vrindaban to die in the holy abode<br />

of <strong>Radha</strong>-Krishna. Others come as part of their life<br />

journey seeking purification and enlightenment.<br />

Large parties of pilgrims come <strong>for</strong> major festivals. I<br />

wondered about the spirituality of some people who<br />

pushed and shoved to get on a crowded bus to<br />

Mathura or harassed me <strong>for</strong> being American. Over<br />

time, I learned that personal and social problems are<br />

much deeper than I understood then.<br />

That night, Gunarnava and I attended musical<br />

plays depicting <strong>Radha</strong>-Krishna and Chaitanya's pastimes<br />

at the home of the head Goswami of <strong>Radha</strong><br />

Raman temple. We were guests of Dr. Kapoor, a friend<br />

of Swamiji's. He translated the gist of the plays <strong>for</strong> us.<br />

I was impressed and moved by the depth of devotional<br />

emotion presented in a simple yet highly artistic<br />

manner. We returned several nights <strong>for</strong> continuing<br />

per<strong>for</strong>mances of the plays.<br />

Swamiji sent a group of devotees headed by<br />

Tamal Krishna to Delhi to help start a temple and organize<br />

a big festival like we had in Bombay. He wrote<br />

me, "What are you doing in Vrindaban? Return to<br />

Delhi immediately."<br />

111

Hooray! Your file is uploaded and ready to be published.

Saved successfully!

Ooh no, something went wrong!