Author Archives: H.H. Bhaktimarg Swami

Cherry Beach, Toronto   Midges and Masses   Nimai and I walked (with distance) along the edge of the bay at Lake Ontario’s Cherry Beach. We were careful to circumvent the party of younger folks dancing and gyrating to the drums. It was an …

Ramsden Park, Toronto   Virtual Day   A Montreal group of Russian speaking origin occupied the late morning on a zoom call. My assignment was on the topic of “Memories of Prabhupada,” referring to my own recollections of our reverent guru. …

Ramsden Park, Toronto   Pink Snow   It was nice to see Chris again. It’s been about a year since I last saw him cycling around. Wherever he spots me he pulls over and we chat. Chris is a Vedic person and has a guru, so we can exchange words…

Ramsden Park, Toronto   Yesterday, All My Troubles Seem So Far Away   We had a lively Zoom group, our usual Thursday gathering. Discussions were on chapter 9, verse 32 of The Gita. In Ranchor Prime’s translation of the verse it goes like th…

Ramsden Park, Toronto   Shaping Prayer   Shaping a prayer was a portion of today’s preoccupation. Why is prayer important? It is a practice amongst followers of bhakti yoga. A person by the name of Akura, during Krishna’s time, championed …

243 Avenue Rd., Toronto   Subtle Work Out   We are keeping it up. Every day Dharma Prana and I attend the noon services, called Bhoga Arati where I play the mrdunga drum and sing in a type of serenade to entertain the deities of Krishna on …

243 Avenue Rd., Toronto   Happy Birthday!   Dharma Prana turned 72 today. Yes, the happy-go-lucky guy, who is actually a monk, had his birthday and we celebrated it in style – that is, in simplicity. Our cook put together a cheesecake, mode…

Yorkville, Toronto   Three Talks Before a Walk   In the morning the sun shot out to bless the sky and earth. By noon clouds closed the doors to a usually welcome sun.   But the sun did shine on my day in the form of three Zoom talks; …

Ramsden Park, Toronto   Bright Yellow   The grassy green of the park is now spotted with the yellow of the dandelion. Yellow is a happy colour. In our culture we read about the striking yellows worn by Krishna and Vishnu, from the waist dow…

Room at 243, Toronto   The Power of the Gita   The Bhagavad-Gita, a divine conversation between a wise person and a confused one, is more relevant today than ever. This realization became evident today when a man called asking for a pocket …

Ramsden Park, Toronto   A Dangerous Situation?   Franck recognized me at the park and came up to the mound where I was sitting.   “India’s not doing too good right now,” he said in concern over the Covid situation.   “That’s right…

Room at 243, Toronto   Cleaning and Finding   I was doing some spring cleaning and while doing so I came upon my records or reports of my second cross country walk, in 2003. Today, May 5, 2003, Bhakta Shane writes on the walking monk update…

Room at 243, Toronto   PANKAJANGHRI   Another friend passed away from Covid in Mayapur, India. Bless his soul. He had taken me to the Ganges more than once for dispersing ashes of acquaintances. My poem dedicated to him.   PANKAJANGHRI…

Room at 243, Toronto At Canto 10   Once a month I connect with the Vancouver community, the first Monday. They are studying in sequence the Bhagavatam book and are in the section of canto ten where there is the meeting of the two great minds, N…

Ramsden Park, Toronto Noticing “Have you done your count of steps today?” Asked the middle-aged couple who stopped to make sure about getting an answer. They were not demanding. They just wanted to strike a conversation which I really appreciated. W…

Ramsden Park, Toronto   The Things I Saw and Heard Today   Before Zoom classes began I took advantage of the beckoning sun. I was sure this was not a singular thought. Sure enough the craving for sun, green-ness and crisp air was apparent. …

Ramsden Park, Toronto   It Dawned on Me   It was quite the humid day; cool to the feel. The wind was up and trees were dancing with their upper bodies while their trunks, as usual, were anchored stiff.   When my services were completed…

Room at 243, Toronto   Two Verses   While keeping indoors from ongoing showers, the real shelter for me for the afternoon was a Zoom call with our weekly Gita study group. We dove into chapter nine of this dialogue of a masterpiece. Krishna…

Davisville, Toronto   David Drove   David drove me to the clinic for my vaccine. I told him to move along, that I’ll take the 4 km hike back. There I was filling out a form. The questionnaire was easy, especially when it asks, “Are you pre…

Room at 243, Toronto   Mayapura Meditation   When rain comes, as it does now as I write, it sets a mood for meditation. I was thinking about Mayapura in India as those raindrops hit the window panes of my room.   Mayapura has been burs…

Ramsden Park, Toronto   That’s Hanuman   With his birthday yesterday I formatted a poem on this beloved hero.   That’s Hanuman   He has the power of devotion Weather still or in motion Assistant to Sri Ram And his brother Laksm…

Ramsden Park, Toronto   Meeting Hugh Smiley   Today I walked to a different park bench, plopped myself down and began chanting with the aid of my beads when a neighbor walked by and stopped. He has seen me around. Hugh Smiley is his name. &…

Ramsden Park, Toronto   I Spooked Him/He Spooked Me   He was fully, thickly-masked when he approached me at the park bench. His name is Indrajit and after talking to him for a bit I got the impression he was at least raised in Canada, judgi…

McPherson Street, Toronto   Gently Weeps   The sun captivated everyone. Motorists rolled down their windows to take in the good air as they moved along slowly; as is usual on a Friday afternoon. I had my window down also. I could hear pedes…

Ramsden Park, Ontario   Comfort With Discomfort   I took to the back alley as my walking route. Back alleys in our neighborhood are nothing foreboding. They are neat, tidy, safe and hardly a person you’ll see.   Now I’m not being antis…

Room at 243, Toronto   Rama’s Day   Today was Rama’s day. We remember Him for his contributions to the world, being an ideal monarch or ruler; hard to find these days. He is also recognized for his being an ideal husband. It was always an u…

Room at 243, Toronto    Rama   Tomorrow is the birthday of Rama and, as told in The Ramayana by Krishna Dharma, we have the following excerpt:   Daśaratha, his desire fulfilled, dwelt happily in Ayodhya awaiting the birth of his sons…

Around the Block, Toronto   Out Back   Whenever there is an event around the corner, I feel compelled to clean up the place. With the dawn of Ramanavami that urge was strong. David and I took to some cleaning up in the back of the building….

Room at 243, Toronto   Ram’s Coming   I had fun on three calls today, the first one originated from Cleveland. It’s a great group; a demographical mix. They wanted to hear about Ram and His contributions to the world. Born in Ayodhya, the s…

Ramsden Park, Toronto   With Care   With care and caution, “Govinda’s Restaurant” is up and going again. And with its self-imposed Covid restrictions for some days its management was determined to re-open after the break. The facility, whic…

Around the Block, Toronto   Dear Mind   Dear mind, Some days you are a friend Some days you are foe You swing moods up You swing them low I can’t always trust You’re not in one place You respond well to lust Big dose or a trace You le…

Room at 243, Toronto   Cycles   The day was gloomy, chili, overcast but necessary as a part of a cycle. Rain came. It’s needed. The night came in with a waxing crescent moon just as it has been some nights before in the cycle. Then we love …

Ramsden Park, Toronto   Things to Ponder and Do   I would devote the day in my service to guru’s mission with a stride in the park. It was dark and some young men from the neighborhood just completed shooting basketball. I was on a bench fi…

Room at 243, Toronto   The Right Colour   Yes, I was in the room, but less than the last few days. I took to the park and, of course, to a bench, for serene chanting on my beads. I stopped abruptly because someone paid me a visit.   He…

Room at 243, Toronto   Walked and Read and Prayed   I walked around the block. It was a great victory going at it — three times in one day. Well-masked in the temple room, which I hadn’t visited in days, I offered my respects to the deities…

Room at 243, Toronto   11:59   11:59 PM was the exact time I was able to come out of isolation. So, at this time, as Monday mellowed down, I opened the door, descend the indoor stairs, then the outdoor steps to get to the street level on Ro…

Room at 243, Toronto   Panel Discussion   English was not her first language and she also struggled with my Sanskrit name. However, she properly pronounced the “Swami” part. The best she could come up with for my first name, Bhaktimarga, wa…

Room at 243, Toronto   Panel Discussion   English was not her first language and she also struggled with my Sanskrit name. However, she properly pronounced the “Swami” part. The best she could come up with for my first name, Bhaktimarga, wa…

Room at 243, Toronto   Touching Truth   Oh, how I miss green! How I miss us — groups chanting together in that outdoor or indoor space. Every day I reminisce.   My isolation will end on the coming Monday but it still won’t be normal. R…

Room at 243, Toronto   New Full-Fledged Monk   There are few North American fellows stepping up for the renounced title, sannyas. We have a queue of people from Eastern Europe and India but it is rare to find on the list of candidates anyon…