A Tribute to Athens

These past two months of assisting Srila Acaryadev (Dr. Resnick) during his writing retreat in Athens, Ohio have been quite literally off the hook, off the wall, and out of this world, fantastic. I never expected to be able to spend so much time with Acaryadev in the company of, whom I consider, the coolest and most sincere devotees I know. No false pretension, no pressure, no heroic organizational feats, just simple folks trying to love and serve Krishna in the best way they know how. Athens is a small college town. Naturally, wherever there are students, there is great hunger and poverty. Every Friday afternoon on the college green, the local devotees organize what they call a "Starving Artists Lunch," featuring the finest in vegan prasadam cuisine.
So many wonderful personalities came to visit Acaryadeva. Pictured above is my godbrother Arka das from Australia and my godsister Yaitza from Puerto Rico.

"Yo mataji! Can you spare some subji for a poor little beggar like Ali Krsna devi? But don't forget the dasi, that's what makes this name complete, as I offer flowers to my guru's lotus feet. OH, SHAKE YOUR ASAFOETIDA! Just shake your asafoetida. I ain't no meat eater, and I don't eat garlic neither! OH!"

I introduce to you the infamous Tessafoetida. When we're not rapping, we're skipping and dancing at 5 in the morning. After these two months, I can honestly say that she is one of my favorite people on this planet. Tess generously invited me to stay with her during my time in Athens and her hospitality was first-class. She is sweetness personified and her devotion is inspiring. Gurjeet and Marian came to visit from Columbus, Ohio and we went hiking to a big cave just off the bike trail. These girls rock and are organizing the bhakti yoga college preaching programs at the giant state university in Columbus. Marian is special, shy but witty, sharp and hilarious, hitting up the prasadam after a Sunday feast program in Columbus at which Acaryadeva spoke. Here Acaryadev sits at his desk. He is finishing up a novel that he has been working on for years. I had the great honor of spending many hours sitting in this room while Acaryadev read aloud. I helped with some minor editing. The plot is amazing and the characters are richly developed. The book is a fictional, transcendental mystery/love story based around the story of Dhruva Maharaja in the Srimad Bhagavatam. It's definitely a page turner. Miss Bindhu. Calm and serene. Introspective and totally goofy. Bindhu is my godsister who lives out in Seattle, WA. Her specialty is baking bread. One bite of her bread is like biting into tangible love. She is humble, thoughtful, and extremely perceptive. I am a big fan of hers. Pictured above is the asafoetida sampridaya. Her Grace Malati Manjari came to visit Acaryadev all the way from Germany. She asked me to help her write a contemporary book about the importance of vegetarianism. She is my kind of cowgryl.
As Weird Al puts it so nicely, "Lunch, lunch, lunch, they want to have lunch, lunch, lunch, they want to have lunch! They just a wanna, they just a wannaaaaaa. They just a wanna, they just a wannaaaaaaa. When the working day is done...." Indeed the high lite of these past two months have been Acaryadeva's lectures. To listen or download some of Acaryadeva's lectures given in Athens click here.
Several years back I remember meditating on how sorely limited I was in my consequence and influence on society. I realized that the best thing I could do for humanity was to find a righteous somebody who already has influence and assist them accordingly. Krishna answered my prayers as always. I can not think of anyone else I would rather serve than Acaryadeva nor a mission as noble. As Acaryadev puts it, "basement-bottom dharma, prices are slashed." This is our yuga dharma- chanting, dancing, and feasting. It's that simple. I have to stop sometimes and realize my beautiful, beautiful life.
Hey Lord Caitanya, maybe I can help you too with the sankirtana movement? I sure am impressed by your die-hard fans. In fact, I think they are some of the greatest people in this world. This sankirtan party is rockin' and I've never been one to leave early from a good party. You mind if I stick around for awhile?