Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Dance of Devotion

It was one evening at October this year. The wall clock in my room stroke 7 pm . I stood up from my chair, opened the curtains of the window. My eyes then followed every women clad in 'sarees' and men in 'Pajamas' or 'dhoti' walking towards Iskcon temple. All those men and women had two things in common. Firstly they all were foreigners; many of them were from eastern Europe. Secondly, they all chanted " Hare Ram ! Hare Krishna !" I could not just resist my boredom and went off to see the temple. What  I saw there, what I felt and learned has transcended in my actions.It was an experience for a lifetime.

As I entered the courtyard of the temple,I could feel the faith, bhakti , chant and the dance of the free spirits. About a hundred people were sitting beside the temple. There were a group of musicians.All they were doing was singing "Hare Ram ! Hare Krishna !". There was an overflow of people. The place was so vibrant. Everyone there were chanting, singing and dancing. Some came to express their faith, some came out of devotions, some came to seek refuge, some came to feel the amazing energy and the positive vibrations, some came to release their monotony of life. I was there out of curiosity.

I did not know then that my desire would turn into a habit. I did not know how time unfolds and passes by. Every evening during my 15 days stay at Delhi, I was there. My heart took me and I could not resist. I could not resist because I saw everyone dance and I danced with them. I danced with all the strangers and danced as if I had been with them for a longtime. The ladies were dancing. The Children were dancing.All the old and young, married and single, sanyasins and worldly were dancing. There was no guide, no teacher, no instructor, nobody to tell you how to dance. But everyone were dancing in a perfect rhythm. All were dancing in union. 

My boredom was gone. I was no more alone. I was no more a stranger. I was a devotee. So, were the rest of them. People often say, dancing is an art. May be it is. What I learned was "Bhakti" , devotion is an art. When One knows how to devote oneself, dance emerges from their soul and take its form. Dance then freely.Let your legs move, free your body and you will get freed from all sorts of impurities. Your muscles become relaxed, your emotional trauma is long gone and you are open to all the possibilities. 

I even talked with many people there.I have been asking myself since that day. "Is it dance or devotion?"
They say it is devotion to the divine "Lord Krishna". I thought it requires lots of courage to come from another corner  of the world and be in union with the spirit of the people there.But it was not. I was wrong. It was devotion that brought them there. "Dance of Devotion" was what united all the souls together.