My friends left Vrindavan soon after the Hyderabad program in 2003 and went back to their countries. Soon after, the festival season started. The town started celebrating and we also got ready for Diwali.
After the Diwali celebrations, a couple came to the Ashram. They were of Indian origin but their forefathers had emigrated to Fiji. They themselves had been born in Fiji but had then migrated to New Zealand. They were now on a pilgrimage through Northern India and had of course also come to Vrindavan. They had somewhere heard of our Ashram and so they came and stayed with us.
When we talked about their current country of residence, New Zealand, I told them that in summer I had been in touch over chat with a woman from New Zealand. She had invited me and we had agreed that I would come in December. Hearing this, the Indian couple was very happy and they straight away invited me to come to their home, too. They told me that there were many Indians in Auckland, where they also lived, and that the Indian community would be very happy to have me there. I was happy that I would have another place where I could go when I was in New Zealand.
While talking the man said that he had still many relatives in Fiji and that they would also like to welcome me there. I got to know that there were lots of Hindi-speaking people in Fiji and they told me that about 50% of people there were Indians and many of them would surely love to participate in my program. He spoke with his daughter and her family in Fiji and they repeated the invitation – so I agreed, I would come to New Zealand and go to Fiji from there, too.
Maybe you ask yourself now what kind of program I would give there, as I had just decided not to do this kind of nine-day-lecture-program anymore. In those nine days it was the concept that I started on the first day with the first verses of a scripture and would have to end on the ninth day with the last words. I would include all rituals and ceremonies in my lectures and I would have to talk about the complete scripture, even about parts that I was not convinced of.
Now I wanted to give lectures which were not bound to this kind of schedule. So there would be one topic and I would talk about that. People could ask questions to the scriptures and I would answer. I would pick those topics which I liked and which I loved to talk about. I had done this kind of lectures before, too, and I enjoyed them much more. I would pick parts from different scriptures and was more free than in programs in which I had to stick to only one.
So I told them that I would let them know once I was in New Zealand and that I would come by when I would have time. We did not fix a date but kept it open. In the same way I thought I would also go to Fiji, to their daughter and son-in-law’s family. I was happy that there were new places to go to and I wanted to stay open for further possibilities, too, so I did not fix any specific dates. There could always be someone who is also interested in inviting me. And like this I booked my flights to New Zealand for December 2003, with lots of space free for extra travelling.
Related posts
कृपया ग्लानि न करें यदि किसी की कल्पना करके आपका खड़ा अथवा गीली हो जाए
Bitte haben Sie kein schlechtes Gewissen, wenn Sie eine Erektion bekommen oder nass werden, weil Sie sich jemanden vorstellen
Please don’t feel guilty if you get erection or wet by imagining someone
Meine Beziehung zu meinem Vater
My relationship with my father
पिता के साथ मेरा सम्बन्ध
Neues Kapitel im Leben, Herausforderungen und Lektionen
New chapter in life, challenges and lessons
I think whenever we have the chance to see something new, we should go into. Our world is so rich and full of fantastic things. So why should we sit at home and watch TV or do something, we can always do? In every corner of this world we can also find a part from our personality, every country can give us something very useful.
I think it’s wonderful that you meet new people and they invite you to these wonderful places and you were able to share your work. I love the spontaneity of it all and how you can just go without fixed dates and know that people would be happy to invite you to their places. I wonder how was Fiji?!?