In Argentina we celebrated the birthday of our beloved Guru on Sunday, November 21. The devotees who were able to attend in person were excited to be getting together again after almost a year and a half, but there were also others who attended virtually online.
We began the meeting with a Pada Puja, during which those present could offer a pot of milk to Swamiji’s feet while people in their homes did the same in their minds and hearts. We were also able to connect online with a Mataji who, in her usual entertaining way, shared some of her experiences with Swamiji that were instructive and inspiring. The devotees were happy to have her join in the celebration and also grateful to Chandika for her professional translation! Later we all had the opportunity to tell about our own experiences with Swamiji, such as times when we felt angry with him and that then his grace and blessings allowed us to experience something truly beautiful in our hearts.
After this we sang a few bhajans and laid our prepared offerings at Swamiji’s feet. We ended with a metta meditation guided by a devotee. There were about 25 people present at this beautiful programme, including devotees from different parts of Argentina and from other countries, as well as some new people.
Those of us at the Centre then shared our basket dinners and of course Swamiji’s birthday cake! Once again Swamiji blessed us with his presence; we could feel his embracing love and this made us all very happy indeed! I hope that everyone around the world was also able to celebrate the birthday of our beloved master in a good way and that we will all do our best to honour his life by following his teachings.
