Kurma

This was my last free day before plunging headlong into more cooking classes. Brihaspati and I drove to Byron Bay, where we met up with some old friends Bhagavat and Nrisimhadeva.

We had lunch at the famous Cardamom Pod, a great Hare Krishna Restaurant on the main street. It was packed with people, and the food was delicious.

As the sun went down we drove to Murwillumbah, home of New Govardhana, and many Hare Krishna devotees including Nrisimhadeva and his family.

The scenery in the Tweed Valley is gorgeous. Here's a view from Nrisimhadeva's verandah. The imposing World Heritage-listed Mount Warning (pointed peak on the left) stands, sentinel-like, on the horizon.

Mount Warning (Wollumbin) is the remnant central plug of a massive ancient volcano, a sacred place of great significance to the people of the Bundjalung Nation, and a traditional place of cultural law, initiation and spiritual education.

'Wollumbin,' means 'fighting chief of the mountains,' and the Aboriginal people believe that lightning and thunder observed on the mountain are warring warriors and that landslides are wounds obtained in battle.

The mountain was named by Captain Cook to warn future mariners of the offshore reefs he encountered in May 1770.

Sipping herbal tea and discussing life with my friends in a most pleasant manner, I noticed puffy rain clouds accumulating and exhibiting a most charming scene.

I was moved to remember descriptions of Vrindavana, land of Krishna's pastimes:

"Then the rainy season began, giving life and sustenance to all living beings. The sky began to rumble with thunder, and lightning flashed on the horizon. The sky was then covered by dense blue clouds accompanied by lightning and thunder.

Thus the sky and its natural illumination were covered in the same way that the spirit soul is covered by the three modes of material nature....Flashing with lightning, great clouds were shaken and swept about by fierce winds.

Just like merciful persons, the clouds gave their lives for the pleasure of this world. In the same way as great, compassionate personalities sometimes give their lives or wealth for the happiness of society, the rain clouds poured down their rain upon the parched earth."

Discuss (5 responses) Comment [5] Trackback [0] Remembering Autumn in Vrindavana