Maharaj-ji’s Chai
In addition to stories from our India travels, our chai pilgrimage continues on at home in New Mexico. Saturday was the big Bhandara Festival at the Hanuman Temple here in Taos. It was Neem Karoli Baba’s 35th Mahasamadhi anniversary. 108 Hanuman Chaleesas were sung from 4 am until late afternoon while a huge feast was cooked outside over fires. We made one of the many 13-gallon pots of masala chai that day. Below, Patrick smashes loads of ginger to make a warming-chai for the chilly, Fall morning.
After the tea and cardamon steeped, Jessie and Patrick strain the masala into the sweet, boiled milk.
And Maharaj-ji got the first sip as always.
We were especially happy the frost held off on our garden so we could bring flowers for Bhandara. Dhalias, gladiolas, zinnias, zulu princes, cosmos,
and thousands of marigolds for malas!
These are the Bhandara t-shirts I designed this year for the temple. I wanted it to be really kid-like and playful. The young Hanuman is printed large on the back of the shirts. He is trying to catch the sun made from his tail. (Patrick is wearing this shirt in the top photo.) An older, wiser Hanuman is printed small on the front with Maharaj-ji’s saying, “Love everyone, serve everyone, remember God.”
I wish I had pictures of the BEAUTIFUL temple room, the kids’ performance of the Ram Lila, and the fancy new chai dukhan that our friends Baltizar and Ananda made…but my camera’s batteries were out of juice. It was a really sweet day filled with many prayers and community. So many Indians make the pilgrimage to Taos, too, coming from all over the country, bringing India closer to home.
