By Yasoda devi dasi
On the 12 September, New Govardhana had a visit from 44 Year 9 students from Kadina High School, Goonellabah. The students were accompanied by three of their teachers. They are studying Geography at school and as part of their curriculum are required to investigate a ‘Community’.
Upon arrival, we visited the fruit and flower gardens in the Krishna Village area. We looked at the type of shortterm accommodation available and the communal kitchen, pizza oven and so on. We wandered across to the yoga centre and they were very impressed with how the shed had been beautified and converted into a yoga centre. We also headed up to the vegetable gardens to look at the produce growing here and to view some of our cows lazing in the sunshine. This led us into a discussion about the concept of “Simple living and high thinking”.
The bus drove everyone to the temple area. The teachers had sent me a document of 18 questions prior to the day of the excursion. I answered these as a group, as it is a requirement that the students were to discuss and record the answers for an assignment that they will complete back at school after their visit to us. The questions are quite varied and some of the topics include Hare Krsna key beliefs, sense of identity, lifestyle features, history and the like.
It was now time for the midday arati. This was a wonderful opportunity for the students to experience first hand what they had come here to learn about. I had asked permission from the gurukula, if the secondary students would be present at the arati. Anjali led a very powerful kirtana, with most students assisting with playing instruments. The students from Kadina were dancing enthusiastically.
The gurukula students then sang the Shanti mantras for peace, which impressed everyone with their potency. We followed this with the gurukula students explaining a little about their lifestyle and answering questions from the Kadina students. It was a wonderful exchange for everyone involved.
The Kadina students enjoyed a succulent lunch of prasadam cooked by Jhulan dasi. Many thanks to the devotees who assisted on the day, especially Vasustrestha dasa and those who assisted. This contributed in making it a very special and memorable day for the students.
Finally, I was so impressed that one of the teachers from Kadina has brought many school excursions to our community from various schools that he has taught at over the years. He had first visited us when he was a student on the same type of bus tour with the school he attended as a teenager. This showed me how much of an impression that our community had upon him, so much so that he wishes to share the experience with his own students whom he now teaches.