From schools to elephants to cooking school.

Today we went to visit the community schools. At the first school, we met with high school students and just like on the buses, all the girls were seated at the front with the boys at the back. When we told them we were curious about arranged marriages, nervous giggling rippled through the rows of girls. There is no other option for these girls except arranged marriages. The students asked us if we had a cast system. The boys were eager to participate, but the girls were reluctant to ask questions. We finally refused to take anymore questions until we had a voice from the girls. One girl then asked if we had a male dominated society. This question led to a lively and sometimes heated discussion about domestic violence and divorce. As we left for the next school, our celebrity status was once again reinforced with girls in long plaited hair running up and giggling, "Autograph ma'am, autograph".

Next we met with the the students of the fourth and fifth standard and this was especially meaningful for me as I read letters from my students at Keatsway. Donni led the students in a rousing rendition of "waddlyacka" and they responded by proudly singing their national anthem.

From here we went to the local temple, which I found to be peaceful and serene in its simplicity. The local Pujabi, dressed in orange robes, led us in taking part in Puja, which is a definitely a sensory experience. First you ring the bell to awaken the spirits; there is powder to be put on your forehead; flowers decorate the front of the temple and you are given flower petals to throw; incense is burning and you bathe yourself in the smoke; you eat the prasada and then receive darshan (blessing) from the Pujabi. It was beautiful to watch the ladies in their brightly coloured saris taking part in puja combined with the bold colours of all the flowers against the white walls of the temple.

Swamiji had arranged for his elephant, Gowrie, to be brought for us to ride and we really enjoyed being perched on top of this massive beast. We then had a walking tour of the local village which again confirmed that the Indian hospitality is so welcoming and loving.

From here, it was back to the Ashram for a cooking lesson.

After dinner we held our last audience with Swamiji and he shared one of his poems.

Sat yam Shivam Sundaram
God is one, but his names are many
Reality is one, but it's ways are many
Spirituality is one, but religions are many
Humanity is one, but human beings are many

There cannot be one religion for the whole world
Religions are like flowers of a beautiful garden
Every flower has got its own individual beauty
Adding to the total beauty of the garden!

Enjoy the beauty of the flower of your choice!
While enjoying the beauty of the garden!
Let not your choice be thrust on others
Nor be it a cause for coercion and conflict!

Dr. Shivamurthy Swamiji