I had a really great time this week with Shyamarani-devi-dasi giving classes twice a day. I learned a lot from her: Stuff about preaching, about the importance of having a sweetness mood, on being humble, Guru tattva, etc.She told me to say the Mangalacarana prayers every day and explained how powerful they are. They are non-different.She also told me to get Tulsai-devi and worship her, and was slightly angry at the idea of meditating with Kanti-mala instead of using tulsai leaves. She said in Winter I should give Tulsai to the Temple to look after.On Thursday in the evening this Hindi guy came. He'd just been given a book from the street. He was really strange and odd though. His behavior was just bizarre. He brought a shopping bag with him full of alcohol and chicken and he plops it down right in front of the altar! Then after we have explained to him not to do that and to leave it outside, what does he go and do? He lights up a cigarette! When Padmini tells him to go and smoke it in the garden he disappears for a moment and then comes back with the cigarette again! I told my mother about it, and even she couldn't believe the stupidity and nerve of the man.On Friday morning I got dressed into clean clothes, put Tilaka on the 12 places of my body and went to the Temple. I helped make plates to offer to Gurudeva using the fruit and flowers I'd brought with me. Then Shyamarani gave class and afterwards everyone had to leave apart from the new initiates. Shyamarani called Natasha from the other room and told her to sit in front of me between her, I asked Natasha earlier why she did that and she told me it was because she was a Sanyasini and couldn't sit so close to a man. I feel stupid that I didn't realize this before and sat up so close to her. We called Gurudeva on a speakerphone and he first gave Harinama to the people there and gave them their new names. Then they had to leave and it was time for Gopala-Mantra initiation. It was just myself and a woman devotee. No one was taking Diksha, but there was the worry that he would give it to me.He said the Gopala mantra, and we had to repeat it a couple of times. Then he said what the words meant. Then he said, and I'm allowed to tell you this - That now Krishna was our most beloved and we must always think of him as such. Then he told us that Gurudeva was our Father and that Gayatri mantras were our mother. Then he gave us his blessings and left.It was so nice. Then we do Guru-puja and offered our plates and flowers. Then I hanged around, chanted my rounds, chatted with the devotees and things.At five myself and the female devotee who took initiation with me were asked to speak with Shyamarani about Gopala mantra. She explained to us how to do it, and then about how to offer food. I don't really understand the food thing though and will have to ask at the temple about it.Then we got given lifts to go to Shyamarani's evening and last class before she went to Berlin. It was being held in my local highstreet in the Lakshmi-Naryana Temple which I'd never seen before or known about.It was amazing! It was a proper Indian style temple. They were performing Abisekam on the deities there - which is when they wash them. It was amazingly beautiful, if you ever come to London I must show you it! The pandits there looked like Shivates, but they worshiped Lakshmi-narayana in this huge mandir inside the temple. There were four other mandirs alongside the wall with hanuman, durga and some other deities that I didn't recognize. On the walls were carvings of Radha-Krishna, Sita-Ram and some others.It was just amazing, and so full of Indians.Afterwards as I walked back to the car with Krishna-Kripa and Natasha we sang Hare Krishna as a joke along the road, Krishna-kripa was on mrdanga, I was on tambourine and Natasha was clapping. Then this man drove by and we moved out of his way and he shouted at us "Get off the fucking road!" We just burst out laughing and then continued, slightly louder this time around.Then when I came home there was a package waiting from me. It was a book all about Gopala Mantra. From markadm. I really like it; the slokas are actually made up of the Gopala mantra. So beautiful.I haven't actually started Gopala Mantra yet, however. I need to know the directions of East and North. I could do it in front of my altar I guess, but they are just pictures, not deities. Also I don't have a pure Acaman, I still need to clean it with some cow poop at the temple. Then I'll be all Gopala-mantra'd up :D
Post je objavljen 31.07.2009. u 18:06 sati.