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| | Enviado Martes, 26 de Julio de 2005 - 09:12 pm: |  |
Padayatra América
April 25
Tomorrow we will be back on the main business route 185. The last section of the tunnel road (147) brings us through Mixtepec and Palomares.
Now, it’s 7:00 and time to stop. We have a small group of young boys that have been walking with us 5 kms and a lady with her boy. It’s time, but we are coming into this small town which is not very good for us…..the reason we don’t like to stay in towns is because usually in towns there are too many burros therefore no grass for our animals to eat at night; for us is better to stay out on the road which some consider “more dangerous”. Anyway we are here now and must stop as the light is coming down and the padayatris are tired.
The first thing we perceive coming into town is a quiet goodness atmosphere, a small river of clean water runs across the road and every house is provided withfruit and flower trees. We stop near the river and have an interchange with some of the locals—very well educated; simple but cultured….Candrabhaga agree is a nice village.
Not very much later a woman arrived with her sons and approached us offering something to drink, and take the hand and kiss it in a sign of respect. Without any question, she and her family then went in front of the Deities and kneeling began to pray. At that moment more villagers came with candles and fragrant Gardenia flowers- filling the altar! Now it is dark, but the whole atmosphere is illuminated by the candles on the altar- and Their Lordsips were extremely pleased. These are devotees!! In a spontaneous way they came to the Lord crying, offering prayers with sincerity asking for mercy and forgiveness for their sins…..it was extremely intense. I look at Candrabhaga and could see tears also coming to her eyes by seeing their devotion.
They stood silent for some time, and suddenly start to sing (in union) to glorify Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Their song was saying : “God is here, God is here, and in every heart. God is present here; how wonderful He is, He is. Please my Lord stay here in this place and in my heart.”
They sang in Spanish and everyone joined and chanted different prayers in glorification of God; some of them I used to know (from the Catholic tradition) and joined them also.
After singing, praying, bowing down to their knees, offering gifts and welcoming us in a most brahminical culture they watched and listened while I chanted “Brahma-Samhita” and Narasimha prayers as I do when I put the Deities to sleep. For approximately 40 minutes they stayed quietly listening; after I finished there was still 30 persons- it was 10 pm and I introduce Krsna as a person; talked about the pilgrimage and the importance of coming together to glorify God…..everybody was blissful and after some questions they left with pictures, insence and Krsna conscious literature.
Mixtepec is a village of indigenious culture, for generations back live in this somewhat isolated area. There are definitely devotees…we have hardly seen people acting with such a high standard of Vaisnava etiquette and manifestation of bhakti. The Lord wanted to visit this town- that is why one week ago at the intersection of 185 and 147 He sent that police officer who suggested this route. For us there is no doubt that the Deities wanted to come here to have such a sweet interchange.
We move on the next morning out of the town, but certainly these people are not far away of Krsna.
May 3
We reach Palomares and back onto 185. Heat, humidity, ticks, ants, mosquitos and countless inquiries without privacy; companions of our daily activities. But all these “tribulations” disturbances, are easily surpassed by the nectarean way that Sri Nitai Gaurasundara reciprocate with us by letting us witness Their powerful causeless mercy.
We are in the Istmo of Tehuantepec, a depression between two mountain ranges (Sierras). On the East side is the Sierra of Chiapas and the Western side the Sierra Madre of Mexico. We are coming to the Pacific Coast. Two years ago we were travelling along the Atlantic coast and now we are coming to the biggest Ocean of the world the Great Pacific. South Mexico is a different atmosphere- short, dark indigenious people- simple satisfied people that live and work mostly in the open fields.
Vehicles are more older than in the North, and communications (well, as is always) are very difficult. Electricity is 90 % of the time only in big towns; water is gathered with a bucket- people have always lived like that and it continues-wells, sometimes up to 75 feet deep. The people are clean and less materialistic- of course there is always the kind of person who is full of anxieties after sense gratification and being frustrated by their karma try to impose themselves upon others as “machos” and with very little etiquette or education sometimes come to ask us questions without any relevance. Therefore we sometimes use a technique of “no español” and simply put the Holy Name for everybody to hear. In this age it is the best means of purification.
Moving on……..
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