Thursday 1 October 2009

Friday, September 25th, 2009

Two Great Souls at Wasaga

Wasaga Beach, Ontario

Dwija Gauranga is an exceptional monk who serves in the ashram tirelessly. One of his tasks is to function as errand boy. He also drives me to places if my feet won’t carry me due to the long distance involved and the short time allotted to meet an appointment.

Both of us drove off at 6 a.m., northbound to Wasaga Beach. There we met Vishnu Tattva and Bhismaka, a couple very dedicated to devotion. Although far from any temple, the two of them run a regimented program in the morning consisting of japa meditation, a pooja worship and chants. That’s early morning.

During the daytime, Vishnu teaches an assortment of martial arts. I must admit, he has a unique thing going, coaching young men and women kick boxing as well as regular boxing. He has a high rate of success at having his students cut down on meat consumption and sex. He has his pupils reciting the sacred name, “Govinda”, and giving salutations addressed as “Haribol”. Many of them are learning that Krishna was a warrior and a fighter for justice.

Vishun and Bhismaka’s real claim to fame came from being the personal assistants and cooks of our guru, Srila Prabhupada. Vishnu managed the guest house in Vrndavan, India, in the last days of our guru’s stay with us on the earth and Bhismaka cooked his last meal which was dahl (soup) and rice. In addition to this, she prepared the meal of srikand and malpoor, two yogurt based preparations which was set and buried in his samadhi, the place of his deceased body. This is, of course, all to their great credit.

8 Km

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