I can’t believe I haven’t blogged about India yet. Well I shall now try to absolve that heinous crime and bestow the following words upon you.
So I went to
Mayapur in India, and it was absolutely incredible. As a country it is so different to the UK, but in the best ways possible. From the moment I stumbled out the airport with my blatantly white face (oh how the people stared), I was charged at with an onslaught of crafty cab drivers - who I’ve been told see fair skin as a wad of cash personified. Little did they know, I had none.
I had to wait a couple of hours for my pre-ordered taxi to arrive. This was luckily the final stumbling block of the rigmarole journey I’d experienced so far. The chaos had included not being able to get a visa (because I’m a journalist), having to cancel my flight, having to re-book a more expensive flight, getting my car clamped, getting my local MP to shout at the High Commission of India, a 6 ½ hour wait in Dubai, a 24-hour flight journey, my phone not working, and a low iPod battery. But none of these tests meant anything, because I was determined to get to Mayapur and chant Hare Krishna in the Holy Dham. My mind was on this the whole time.
I arrived in Mayapur about midnight, and after grapping with a square mosquito net, decided I would leave it as a rhombus and head to bed. I woke up the next day and it was like entering a dream. Walked out of my bedroom door and saw the amazing view before me, a lotus flower fountain, hundreds of pilgrims a-wandering, beautiful architecture, and SUN! It was snowing when I left the UK, so this was a definite sign I wasn’t
there anymore. I had a shower in the shared washroom, then merrily started walking around like I’d just discovered Oz or something.
So I walked past the Govinda’s restaurant and was very happy to see a familiar face – it was Gateen from the manor! Then I walked round another corner and saw another familiar face – it was Saci Kishor from the manor! We were originally supposed to be on the same flight, but well… see above. So I basically spent the rest of that day incredibly happy and chanting lots.
I could easily go on for ages on my experiences during the week, but I’ll try to be as brief as possible because I realise we all have very short attention spans that will flicker at the mere idea of something shiny. Some highlights included seeing the birthplace of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu – the most recent incarnation of Krishna himself! He appeared under a neem tree, of which I tried one of the leaves. We then caught a Rikshaw down to the Jagannath temple and saw a talk by HH Radhannath Swami.
Another day we went on a long trip with some lovely Canadian people (I think their names were
Yamuna-Arjuna, Lila and
Nitai-Priya) to
Ekachakra, the birthplace of Sri Nityananda where the spiritual atmosphere was just incredible. We walked through villages where there were so many cows, and peaceful local folk, and cow-patties on the sides of houses ready to be used for cooking. The way of life there is so simple, and yet the people are so much happier than they are here. So it was a big eye-opener in that respect.
I can’t possibly explain it all here but I think India had a profound effect on me. If only just because I broke my crying record. I haven’t leaked tears for 7 whole years, and yet India made me cry on 3 separate occasions. On my final day when I was in the temple during Mangal Arati. I was looking at Radha-Madgava and started crying, totally overwhelmed with love. I could see I was surrounded by so many pure devotees of Krishna, and all of them completely understand their eternal position. They know the very nature of who they are, and I can’t imagine any better perfection that could be achieved during this human lifetime. I really didn’t want to leave.
On the last day, me and Saci got up early and did some filming on the Gurukule. Went to an amazing lecture on vedic psychology, and then interviewed Bhakti Vidya Purna Swami. The whole last day was inspiring, and we finished off by bathing in the sacred Ganga river, and then talking to Jayadvaita Swami about Valentines Day which you may have seen the
video for on my channel.
Oh and one crazy thing I forgot to mention about India – the roads! They’re mental! Everyone drives in zig zags, and there’s random monkeys and elephants and things, just handing out. It makes sense I guess, I mean if I was a monkey I’d pretty much hang out next to a road all day.
OK, I’ve missed loads out, but I’ve written way too much and think it is time to cut my hands off now to stop myself typing any more. Stop it Ben. Now! Stop it. Now. Seriously.
