A NEW CENTRE FOR RAM

Sunday, April 6th, 2025

Winnipeg, Manitoba

Some of the neighbours were a little surprised to see a group of religious folks at mid-afternoon on Sunday in 0° temperatures outside their door. Jennifer Chan, the local government rep, was out there as a part of the noise, so was I – chanting to the beat of three drums. Out of one of the homes came a big German Shepherd. All the fuss was a new thing for him. He was barking up a storm. Through some of the living room windows some people were flashing their cameras. I mentioned beforehand to Vishvambhar, the servant-leader (as he likes to put it), that we go around the block with our procession in a clockwise fashion, due to it being an auspicious direction.

That little exuberant parade in honour of the avatar Ramachandra, ended at the front door of our new building, a converted Salvation Army edifice, with coconuts being smashed at the steps (I guess the coconut water will freeze quite fast).

The event for the first inauguration of the Temple in Winnipeg went nicely both outside and inside. There was no promotion done, but through the power of word of mouth, the main hall got filled up in no time.

When it came to kirtan chanting, I noticed one thing which went a bit off course. When the lead chanter on microphone had a companion next to him on a second mic as a responder, the bulk of the attendees didn't participate much. That second mic is just not favorable for the receive and respond technique. Anyways, overall, there was a pervasive good vibe feel and the prasadam was good.

MAY THE SOURCE BE WITH YOU!

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