Gathering of the Tribes Part II

[Guest guest]

One time in '71, Srila Prabhupada wanted a hundred brahmacaris to go to India.

I was in Santa Barbara at the time and was a grihasta. They closed down Santa

Barbara and Fresno temples to send the brahmacaris to India. I took over the

Spiritual Sky territory of those two temples to collect directly for Radha

Krishna of LA.

 

One day as I returned from one of my week long journeys I came to the office to

deposit all my checks. I saw someone dressed in an Indian paisley tunic with

long curly locks hanging down with his back to me. I was very tired and felt

like I didn't want to deal with this fellow, although usually I would have

tried to preach to any newcomer. I snuck behind him into the office.

 

When I came out, he was facing me now. I immediately recognized it was Louie!

Louie also recognized me. He fell down to offer his obeisances and then we

embraced. He told me he had just returned from travelling with some people in

India and now his name was Hamsa. He exclaimed, "Deena Bandhu! You won't

believe it! I've been following brahmacarya for six months! I feel great!"

 

A couple of months later, the Portland Temple was burned to the ground, and

with it Danaveer Prabhu was fried. Karandhara sent me to take over as TP. About

a month later we moved to a new location. One night there was a knock at the

door and I answered it. It was Louie! He was also surprised since he had just

seen me 3 months before in LA.

 

It shocked him so much that he decided to move into the temple, taking it as a

sign from Krishna that he met me there. It was most amazing. He shaved up and

he loved to go on Harer Nama and he loved book distribution. He was a people

person and very warm so he was very good at book distribution. Even this half

illiterate guy from Spanish Harlem was taking notes in the Bhagwatam and

Bhagavad Gita classes.

 

One day, we got the news that Prabhupada was coming to SF and then leaving for

India. Many devotees wanted to go and Louie begged me to let him go. So I

agreed thinking that he might not come back. He went and Prabhupada gave a

lecture and asked for questions. Louie raised his hand and was acknowledged. He

asked, "Srila Prabhupada, how can I surrender to Krishna?" Prabhupada paused

for a long moment mercifully but gravely glancing on Louie. Then he smiled and

said, "Dance and chant like a madman." Everyond cheered.

 

Of course Louie never came back. He joined the Rainbow People and always made

sure that the devotees got all facility at the Rainbow Gatherings of the

Tribes. And stll dancing and chanting like a mad man.

 

In '80 I moved to Colombia to preach with Alanath Maharaj. Maybe in '83 or so,

Alanatha returned from a trip to Miami. When he left Bogota, a young Spanish

looking girl was assigned the seat next to him. She told him she had just that

day been released from jail on some drug charge and was returning to the

States. Recognizing him as a Hare Krishna, she said her brother had a very

close friend in the Hare Krishnas that he always talked about named Deena

Bandhu. Maharaj said that he's here in Bogota right now. She was really

surprised and gave him a cassette called Warriors of the Rainbow by some fellow

named Fantuzzi. Now he was known by his last name. When Maharaj returned he

told me the story and gave me the cassette.

 

I didn't see him again until Kumbha Mela in '89. Now his curly black locks had

turned into dredge locks but his spirit was indomitable. He never grew up. He

stayed with me for a few days and moved on to some other camp. By this time,

Radhanatha Maharaj new him well and later Malati.

 

We met again at Rathayatra in LA in 93 and he introduced his whole family to

me. Still the same irrepressible personality.

 

Now in this Kumbha I was just thinking that I didn't see him, and here he was.

He was coming from the Rainbow Camp, but there was some family emergency so he

had to rush back to the states. But he thought, how can I come to Kumbha Mela

without seeing Deena Bandhu. He must have stayed and talked past midnight, and

I took him around the camp. He loved the Padayatra Bulls. He gave me his latest

CD Tribal Revival and left. Maybe the Rainbow people have the same politics?

 

I know they need revival. In '96 I was at 4th of July Ratha Yatra in DC. Srimad

Bhagvatam, son of my Godbrother Prajapati was there. I've known him since he

was born. In '93 LA Ratha Yatra he met my daughter Gopalanandini and fell madly

in love with her, but she was already set on Isvar Puri. After that he had

travelled around looking for 'his people'. He eventually went to the Rainbow

Gatherings and started associating with them. But he told me once he got close

to the leaders, he found them rather proud, cold and impersonal. Then he had

just seen Radhanatha Swami preaching at the Rainbow Gathering. Seeing his

humility and hearing his wonderful preaching, he realized that here are my

people. He was on his way to New Vrindavan to become a devotee again.

 

Anyway after meeting Fantuzzi, I told Sarvabhauma that now the Mela is slow and

we have time, lets take the car and go see the Rainbow Camp. It was outside the

Mela Area and there was no lights there for a couple of hundred meters, where

in the Mela it was almost like Las Vegas. There was a makeshift bamboo bridge

across a stream and up the hill into the mango grove.

 

We found everyone around a camp fire and Prithu and party along with Basu Ghosh

and Sanskritananda were already there. We set about distributing the prasad

that we brought although Prithu had already given them prasad. A couple of

people were playing guitar and when they stopped I asked one to let me play. I

sat by the fire and played a tune that has a different chord for every two

words of the mantra and which lends itself for harmonization which westerners

like. It caught on and we went for almost an hour under the crescent moon. In

the end there must have been about 200 people and every type of drum jamming in

this wonderful kirtan. Many were dancing.

 

Then it naturally slowed down and came to a close. Everyone warmly thanked me.

Then I told a story about the service mood of Kumbha Mela. A great king had

called all the demigods and asuras for a huge opulent feast. He said first he

would serve the demons, but the condition was that both their arms would be

tied with long sticks so you cannot bend your hand to your mouth. The demons

unable to reach their mouths, began throwing the food in the air and trying to

catch it in the mouth. Someone got a pakora in the eye, someone sweet rice in

his nose. There was a big waste and mess and no one was satisfied. Then he had

everything cleaned up and served out to the demigods with the same condition.

One demigod picked up a cup of sweet rice and poured it into the mouth of his

neighbor. Another served him a pakora. In this way by sharing with others, they

enjoyed the feast.

 

As long as we're talking about pakoras in the eye, it reminds me of another

story. A man was walking and he saw a huge strong tree and in it there was very

small fruit. Then he saw a weak creeper on the ground with a huge watermelon.

He said that God has no brain. In the strong tree, there is a tiny fruit and on

the weak creeper there is a huge fruit. This is backwards. Then he slept under

the tree. After a while, two fruits fell from tree on his face and he woke up.

Then he said with astonishment that oh God is very intelligent. It that

watermelon had been in the tree, then what would have happenned? Kumbha Mela Ki

Jaya!

 

In service to Sri Sri Krishna Balaram,

Deena Bandhu dasa