with Sri Ganesh

soap nut, lemon and rose water. The principal of Udavi School comes in with his elderly mother and they both chant many slokas; others come in later and help with this and that and all in all we work till well after 7pm and Parthy stays for the night in the Riddhi Room.

- 01-09-11: Ganesh Chaturthy .

... This year Sri Ganesh wears a longi and a shoulder scarf of matte gold, the Mother’s crown rests on his head and he is surrounded with golden grains of rice, rose petals, banana flowers, cobs of corn, brown and green coconuts and amla fruits of a pale shimmering golden green... It is a little mysterious to me; on those days I tend to be short- tempered, judging myself incompetent and inadequate and it is as if I must dig very deep, way behind everything, to provide the channeling for the presence and its beauty, its strength, its harmony... ... Counting the remaining laddus, it looks like about 150 people have come in through the morning. Though they were a little shy and hesitant, Nanditadi and her students and a few other teachers did well with the singing... In general it seems that everyone has been touched and impressed … … Walter said that this year it is even more special, with more power and beauty and an extraordinary expression of presence... ... In the afternoon, more people came in, perhaps another 40 or so... I closed the gate well after 6pm and Parthy came back later to sleep in the Riddhi Room. (I spent another Rs. 250/- for the transport of the teachers to and fro...)

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