By Bhaktimarga Swami
Steve came. He’s a sea gull. He eats right out of your hand. At the top of Nakula’s home (he’s our host) is the veranda and the proud bird sticks his beak out for my morsels. His son, Stevenson, also partakes. They are quite happy with appetite satisfied.
I also met another Steve. You might say he’s more refined. He has a surname, “Hicks”. He happens to be the mayor of Fredericton, capital city of the province. Nice guy! I explained to him what we are up to in this fine downtown district.
“We are re-enacting a major family reunion of a universal scale. The Chariot Fest, Ratha Yatra, goes on all over the world, numbering 35 in Canada alone. We used to pull this gorgeous set of wheels on a country road. This is our first time in the city.”
The mayor was impressed and he joined us on the march on Main St. What he witnessed and I witnessed was a ballooning of people. Folks came from different sections of the province to pitch in, help, and be part of the fun.
We used to call this “Hari Nama Sankirtana,” a lot of people chanting together. Well, that is what it precisely is. I was overwhelmed by the numbers, mostly immigrants from India, so happy, engaged in song and dance.
The culmination of the parade was at the city’s exhibition centre which is rather huge, got filled. And our host from Saint John, Nakula, was the emcee. He’s excellent by the way.
Overall, the couple who deserve the praise for all the fantastic arrangements in Fredericton, are Kadambha Priya and Sobha Radha, who run a successful children’s school.
