Adyar, Sunday 13 October 2013

 IMPRESSIONS  OF  RELIGIOUS   FESTIVITIES  AT  ADYAR

  

Adyar, Sunday, 13 October 2013

The hurricane landed in the state Orissa in the North of India. A few days before its arrival, we had here stormy weather with rain. At 6.10 today, the gate to the beach was closed already and there was no guard to be seen. Because it was dark we had taken the flashlight with us but decided not to take the umbrella. This last decision turned out to be a mistake because on the way back we received a good shower and had to change clothes as soon as we came in the room.

This week, everything was going according to Plan. Today is the Sabbath day of rest and tomorrow there is a religious holiday, again. At 9.30 a.m. there was a Mahanavami Puja in the Library for Sarasvati, the goddess of science, study and wisdom. After the puja, which lasted for about half an hour, we received 'prasad', part of which was in a pocket made of newspaper. The pocket we received had as news that the oldest man on earth had died at the age of 112.

We should save more time to do the study in the book, of which we were asked to make a summary. At lunch today, there were five at the table, talking and exchanging views about religions, sects and cults. One of the locals said that today is one of the most important Hindu religious festivities. People should rest and not even read a book, but reflect on enterprises for the New Year, in the fields of science and study. Tomorrow, one could start studying again. This appears to be somewhat like the Christian festivities at Christmas and the end of the year. So today, we had a very long siesta after which we got up to write in the blog. There also is a Skype appointment at 5 pm. This is of course 5 pm in Europe and after dinner we shall have all the time of the world for it.

Monday morning, we finally received the keys of the house and had a look there, before going to work. It is perfect and only needs some refreshment of the paint. We shall get a telephone connection on the landline, which has a splitter for the Internet. 

Monday night, we went with six to the last day of the Ramayana presentation in the Egmore Museum Theatre. Afterwards we had dinner in the room again.

E-mail is working perfectly, when the laptop with the usb-modem is positioned on the small table against the back door of the apartment.

In the office we made good progress at getting the knack of the system. When we left in the evening, we addressed the boss in our own mother tongue, which was a very pleasant surprise for us and a clear sign that the assimilation is on its way.

The guest from Europe is very entertaining and good company as we can speak in her mother tongue. She will be here for one week only, but has plans to come to India for six months each year. We had a long conversation in the ambassador service car of the former Secretary on the way back from the theatre. The journey through town was experienced as completely normal and thus we might say that we are beginning to feel at home in this country.

Tuesday, the study group was with eight persons. We read the article by the International President of the TS in this year’s October issue of the Theosophist about the study of the Secret Doctrine. Maybe the group is going into the direction of studying the SD. We met in the house of one of the students, because there was a meeting of the TS Madras Federation going on in the Great Hall. Thus we sat on the bed, which had been made especially at eight feet length for a late president, who had been of somewhat taller physical proportion than normal. We were told that Mahatma Gandhi had slept in the house, which was built more than two centuries ago. The guest from abroad said jokingly, that if she had been told earlier, she would have kissed the floor at entering the house.

On Tuesday, the walk to the beach in the evening surprised us with a beautiful sharp first slice of the moon together with the evening star, probably Venus. The dunes before the beach are really clean and one suspects, that citizens have been collecting the rubbish from time to time.

We saw that our future house was being cleaned one afternoon. The supervisor told us, that the bed poles for the mosquito nets would be found and thus we went out to buy a mosquito net and pillows.

Wednesday, we gave a presentation on “Life and Works of Tsong Khapa” in the Great Hall of HQ Building, at 7 p.m. with beamer, laptop and microphone. Afterwards, we were told that it was better than the same presentation we gave in another country. This is a good sign, and might be the result of the fact that we are at the right place at the right time. There were some 45 attendants and after the show, a representative from another lodge asked if we could give the same presentation for them too.

Thursday, the weather was fantastic with heavy rain and thunderstorm during the afternoon. It was a rather busy day with activities in relation to house-keeping and telephone connection. The furniture will come and the head of department will have matresses made for us on the three beds. Some extra furniture would also be made available. He said that the water of the Administration Building was good.

Further there needed to be given a pass photo for Immigration Service in all cases of foreigners residing here on the compound. Same pass photo to be given to Telephone Company with photocopies of passport and visa registration to get a land-line for telephone and internet.

Friday we were so busy that we almost forgot to write in the diary.
We woke up at 5.45, went to the beach, had breakfast, went to the administration for formalities, went to the new house to see what was to be done, went to work, got instructed in the procedures there, wrote a business correspondence by e-mail, went for lunch, had short siesta, worked on internet for the private and the national section’s e-mail correspondence, where we saw that through Linkedin our niece has found us and told us, that she has given birth to a daughter, two weeks ago, went back to work, were further instructed and ate a sweet with a cup of milky wheat porridge with nuts and raisins for the occasion of the tenth anniversary of one of the cooks, enquired about buying the Secret Doctrine for our professor in France, got back to the dormitory and checked the e-mail again, went for dinner and fetched drinking water, went to the beach, where the guard just closed the gate twenty minutes before time and felt obliged to reopen it, because a walker came back from the beach and risked to be locked out, got out to the beach and had a look at the waves and the half-moon in a beautifully colored, sunset lighted sky above the dark green woods of the TS compound. The servants and the guards all want to go home before dark. It seems that they are really scared in the forest like surroundings here.

The last few days there were lots of butterflies dancing around the lush green park, where many flowers have appeared after the recent heavy rains.

Friday, the new guest from abroad was in the study group again, where we were with ten. On the way back we talked somewhat about altruism, the subject of the study and she would like to see the meditation Diagram of HPB, because we mentioned it in the context that all fear disappears, when one is connected to the center, which is everywhere. In the diagram it is formulated as “Conceiving of UNITY by expansion in space and infinite in Time, either with or without self-identification….With memory of universality all dread vanishes during the danger and trials of life.”

Saturday and today, the weather was strangely heavy, because there is a tropical storm in the neighborhood. The waves at the beach were enormous and making a loud roaring sound. There also is a flu moving around here, with very bad symptoms. We had belly ache for a few days already, especially after eating the sweets, so we held long siestas.

Yesterday night at seven we went to a house of one of the locals, where the ladies had organized a puppet exhibition. We received 'prasad' at the beginning, before entering the exhibition. Upstairs, there was a sort of shrine or showcase of more than a hundred old and new puppets or statues of gods and goddesses. The tradition wants it, that the statues of three main goddesses are exposed, Durga on top and a little bit lower Lakshmi and Saraswathi each at the side, during nine days, three days for each of the three goddesses. Many little statues of Ganesh, of other gods and even of Father Christmas were also exposed. The set up looked a bit like what is done at Christmas, when the statues of Mary, Josef, the child Jesus, the shepherds, the three kings etc. are shown in the little Christmas stall or stable near or under the Christmas tree.

We looked up on the Internet, what was to be found about the killing of the Tibetan monk Akong Tulku Rimpoche. It seems, that money and spiritual teaching do not marry too well. Now we understand even better why the TS is keeping the material aspect of its organization to a necessary minimum.

That was the week that was,

Bye for now,

Brooder