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Guru Das and the Hells Angels\u2026
\n\u201cSwamiji called out “Gaura prem-ananda hari hari bol!\u201d In a voice that was simultaneously sweet and grave, he recited paeans glorifying the past preceptors in our spiritual lineage. We collapsed on the floor, bowing down. We all alighted and sat upright silently, as the Swami was now going to speak. The Swami settled into his raised seat. \u201cThank you very much – all of you nice young boys and girls – for coming and\u2026\u201d We heard pounding on the wall – a loud thump from next door. Framed pictures shook. Again there was a thump. \u201c\u2026chanting this Hare Krishna mantra with us.\u201d
\nThe Swami didn\u2019t miss a beat. He stopped talking, called me over, beckoned me closer. My ear was right near his mouth. I felt privileged. \u201cWhat is that sound?\u201d he asked. \u201cI don\u2019t know, \u201d I answered. \u201cIt is coming from next door.\u201d Next door war the God\u2019s Eye Ice Cream parlor, which was the hangout\/hideout of the Hells Angels as well as headquarters for the Diggers, an anarchistic organization run by Emmett Grogan and Peter Coyote that believed all goods and services should be free. The banging continued.
\n\u201cGo see what is making that noise,\u201d Swamiji requested. \u201cAsk them to stop.\u201d \u201cYes Swamiji.\u201d I said. Why me? I thought. I\u2019m wearing a robe, I\u2019m high from the kirtan, and now I have to face the Hells Angels. Cloth versus leather, finger cymbals versus knives, japa beads versus brass knuckles, \u201cborn to lose\u201d instead of Hare Krishna, and chariots instead of Harleys.
\nThe Swami again addressed the congregation. \u201cI see you, so many bright-faced people chanting and feeling blissful by chanting these holy names\u2026\u201d Excusing myself, I went out into the cool night air and started to breath more easily. I heard loud laughter from inside the God\u2019s Eye. \u201cYes,\u201d I thought, \u201cinside God\u2019s eyes, certainly Krishna would protect me.\u201d But my throat was dry as I knocked on the door.
\nA scar-faced, yet handsome, Hells Angel opened the door. He wore swastikas and lots of black leather. He stared at me. I held his eyes and stared back. Six more Angels encircled me. Then a tattooed BORN TO LOSE arm waved me inside. Resolutely, but quietly, I said, as humbly and non-confrontational as I could, \u201cThe Swami is about to speak. We were wondering if you could party less heartily.\u201d
\nThey didn\u2019t say anything. I persevered. \u201cThe thumping on the wall interrupted him. Many folks would like to hear him speak, and you can come too if you like.\u201d One of the Angels stared at me a while longer. Then he smiled and said, \u201cIt was your singing that made us dance, but the wall got in the way! Hey, if the Swami wants to speak, that\u2019s okay with us. Your Guru is heavy, man!\u201d His gap-toothed smile embraced me. I thanked them all.
\nAs neighbors, we would eventually come to know each other and get along well. They came over for free feasts, a stick of incense, or a cup of sugar. After my meeting with them, they always quieted down when they heard the kirtan stop, because they knew the Swami was speaking.\u201c
\n– Guru Das “By His Example\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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<\/p>\n
Guru Das and the Hells Angels…
\n“Swamiji called out “Gaura prem-ananda hari hari bol!” In a voice that was simultaneously sweet and grave, he recited paeans glorifying the past preceptors in our spiritual lineage. We collapsed on the floor, bowing down. We all alighted and sat upright silently, as the Swami was now going to speak. The Swami settled into his raised seat. “Thank you very much – all of you nice young boys and girls – for coming and…” We heard pounding on the wall – a loud thump from next door. Framed pictures shook. Again there was a thump. “…chanting this Hare Krishna mantra with us.”
\nThe Swami didn’t miss a beat. He stopped talking, called me over, beckoned me closer. My ear was right near his mouth. I felt privileged. “What is that sound?” he asked. “I don’t know, ” I answered. “It is coming from next door.” Next door war the God’s Eye Ice Cream parlor, which was the hangout\/hideout of the Hells Angels as well as headquarters for the Diggers, an anarchistic organization run by Emmett Grogan and Peter Coyote that believed all goods and services should be free. The banging continued.
\n“Go see what is making that noise,” Swamiji requested. “Ask them to stop.” “Yes Swamiji.” I said. Why me? I thought. I’m wearing a robe, I’m high from the kirtan, and now I have to face the Hells Angels. Cloth versus leather, finger cymbals versus knives, japa beads versus brass knuckles, “born to lose” instead of Hare Krishna, and chariots instead of Harleys.
\nThe Swami again addressed the congregation. “I see you, so many bright-faced people chanting and feeling blissful by chanting these holy names…” Excusing myself, I went out into the cool night air and started to breath more easily. I heard loud laughter from inside the God’s Eye. “Yes,” I thought, “inside God’s eyes, certainly Krishna would protect me.” But my throat was dry as I knocked on the door.
\nA scar-faced, yet handsome, Hells Angel opened the door. He wore swastikas and lots of black leather. He stared at me. I held his eyes and stared back. Six more Angels encircled me. Then a tattooed BORN TO LOSE arm waved me inside. Resolutely, but quietly, I said, as humbly and non-confrontational as I could, “The Swami is about to speak. We were wondering if you could party less heartily.”
\nThey didn’t say anything. I persevered. “The thumping on the wall interrupted him. Many folks would like to hear him speak, and you can come too if you like.” One of the Angels stared at me a while longer. Then he smiled and said, “It was your singing that made us dance, but the wall got in the way! Hey, if the Swami wants to speak, that’s okay with us. Your Guru is heavy, man!” His gap-toothed smile embraced me. I thanked them all.
\nAs neighbors, we would eventually come to know each other and get along well. They came over for free feasts, a stick of incense, or a cup of sugar. After my meeting with them, they always quieted down when they heard the kirtan stop, because they knew the Swami was speaking.“
\n– Guru Das “By His Example”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10650,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[118],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-22525","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-recent-media"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22525","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/10650"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=22525"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22525\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":41703,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22525\/revisions\/41703"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=22525"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=22525"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dandavats.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=22525"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}