...And they painted the town red

How lucky we are to be born in India! The lord blesses us not only with so much love, but also ensures that we have enough holidays to bask in that grace. A weekend break of four days filled with festivals from 3 different religions- that’s the time to be in Parthi. Unfortunately for us, exams are a dampener along with the erratic rains.

The devotees of Bihar and Jharkhand had come prepared with an offering of programmes celebrating Holi. Last Saturday, we sat in mandir by 4 pm, waiting for Swami’s arrival. I was amused to find many Jharkhand devotees having colours on their faces. They were reflecting the true fervor of the occasion. Swami arrived in Kulwant hall by 4.30 pm. The programme began with the chanting of Gayatri mantra, followed by a bouquet of songs accompanied by dances. The dances were performed by the balvikas children and some of them were truly breathtaking. The dance on shiva stotram and the Ras leela of Krishna stood out among them. Swami’s attention was fixed upon their coordinated and graceful movements. After the performance, Swami called the children and the singers, gave them group photographs. It was truly a memorable day befitting the significance of the occasion.

Yesterday, Swami came out in car for a round at 12 noon. We were lucky to have His darshan just after writing our exam. In the afternoon however, Swami turned up pretty late. Meanwhile, the showers performed above the Kulwant Hall with a thundering noise. Rarely have we witnessed such a downpour in summer. As the rains took leave (perhaps by a stern divine command), Swami arrived here at 6pm. There was a drama by the balvikas children of Bihar on the life of Shabari. Before the programme could begin, Swami went inside interview room and came out with guess what? An Easter egg! He called the primary school boys and handed over the big egg shaped structure (perhaps a chocolate or cake) to the kids. The chocolates prepared by Italian devotees were distributed to the primary school students. The drama was very beautifully enacted, with melodious songs and dances. Swami called the children for group photographs and materialized a chain for Shabari.

The next big event is expected only next month i.e Ugadi. Swami has already been talking about it. He has even given some boys money to buy new clothes, saying He is unable to arrange clothes by Himself due to paucity of time! Hope the exams pass with a wink of an eye.