(Article by Joe Chornou)
On the last Saturday of April, in the heart of the Hill Country, an auspicious event happened: Mela at Radha Madhav Dham. Thousands of people enjoyed the festive atmosphere with all the rich, exotic cultural aspects of India.
Just past noon cars started rolling in from FM1826 onto Barsana Road, greeted by purple and white blossoming crape myrtles, to the parking area on large grassy meadows. As the passengers came strolling in, they first encountered the tall, white marble shikhar of the Raseshwari Radha Rani temple. And to their left, on the grass in front of the temple, camels sitting with their coquettish, contented smiles, waited for the children to come ride upon their humps. Attracted by the colorful Indian bazaar, they enjoyed shopping amongst its many wares and hard-bargaining vendors, then it was on to the snow cone stand, the face-painting booth, the Indian sweets seller, the Vedic astrologer, the palmist, the reflexologist and the "May I Help You" booth. Now they'd arrived at the game area. Of the many games, none were video games or anything avidly afforded with special effects - just the kind of simple games requiring a little bit of skill and a dash of imagination that takes you back to another time when fun was not so complicated. Behind these games stood the vaunted cricket batting cage, which required significant skill. The pitching machine lobbed wind-aided, 85-mile-an-hour, bouncing, knuckle-curve balls that even the greatest batsman of all time, Sir Donald Bradman, would have been lucky to hit! Nearby, more kids formed a continuous line to enter the colorful, inflated, bouncy castle.
All of which was enough to make everyone hungry and thirsty on such a sunny day. So, it was on to the dining halls where all the great 'Tastes of India' were offered. It didn't take long for the dining and picnic areas to fill up with people sitting down to enjoy cuisine with names like sambar and masala dosa. There were samosas with honeyed, sweet and sour chutney sauces poured over them, as well as bhel puri, pani puri, idli, and dahi vada. Enticing aromas made mouths water in anticipation, but people discovered the thirst-quenching delights of an ice cold mango lassi, soothing rose milk drinks, and rejuvenating, tangy cups of Indian style sweet chai. Ahhhh.
As folks considered a visit to the main temple hall to experience some cultural and religious traditions of India, the pathway presented an odyssey of diversions, where kids strong-armed their parents to pause and watch Bonzo Crunch. As one volunteer reported, "He had the children literally howling with laughter, like a pied piper he was." But Bonzo Crunch wasn't the only circus act that was a hit that day. Darren Petersen's juggling and comedy entertained the crowds all day long as well.
Inside the temple's main hall, visitors observed a monk in orange robes, full beard and twinkling eyes, who was introduced as Swami Nikhilanand. He fielded many questions from both westerners and Indians. Questions like, "What is karm?" or "How do the Sanskrit scriptures view cosmology?" or "What does it mean to be an 'old soul'?" Canadian-born Swami Nikhilanand, who has extensively studied the philosophy of the prime Sanskrit scriptures (Vedas, Gita, Bhagwatam, Darshan Shastras) explained that many Sanskrit words from the Hindu scriptures have found their way into the American vernacular, but that some of their meanings and pronunciation were altered in the process. Words like karm, pandit and mantra, and concepts like the soul and reincarnation, which have become so commonly used and accepted in the West, actually originated from Hinduism and Sanskrit scriptures.
Later in the afternoon, traditional India dances were performed to a nearly full house. Dancers from the greater Austin area included Hema Raja and her dancers, Shaili Mehta, Tripi Shrinivaan and her friends from Circle C. Vijaya Vavilikolanu, who teaches at Radha Madhav Dham, and Aparaupa Chatterjee, with her Odissi dance troupe, came down from College Station. Also warmly welcomed were Sahiti Dulipala, who just moved here from Buffalo, N.Y., and used a silver plate in a Kuchipudi style that amazed the audience.
Radha Madhav Dham's Mela is and has always been an open house, a day that Radha Madhav Dham especially sets aside to invite neighbors and the public to come and experience the sights, sounds and tastes of traditional Indian culture, and to take in the spiritual atmosphere of an authentic Hindu ashram. The meaning of "Mela" is "the gathering of people," or, more plainly, an Indian fair. And throughout India there are many, many Melas held for various purposes. But here at Radha Madhav Dham, there is a special purpose beyond just providing an annual open house.
Radha Madhav Dham Managing Member, Dr. Chirag Patel, explained simply: "At Radha Madhav Dham, we have inherited a great spiritual legacy, and it is our intention to share that spiritual wealth with everyone who wishes to come." He continued, "Our Mela provides an opportunity for those who have never experienced Indian culture, with its rich spiritual traditions, to taste it firsthand in a fun-filled manner. And what better platform than to taste it here at the largest Hindu Temple in the United States?"
What was perhaps the biggest highlight at this year's Mela, actually occurred long before the event. Weeks of preparation and organizing were carried out by an unprecedented amount of volunteers who came from all over the United States. They weren't here to relax or vacation, as they could have and probably deserved. Instead of going to a nice beach somewhere in the tropics, they used their vacation time to come to Radha Madhav Dham to work, sometimes late into the night, on preparations for the Mela. Power washing, sweeping, polishing, decorating, trucking in loads of groceries, setting up the tables for games and booths, preparing the stage, and the construction of tents for the bazaar. There were volunteers who called more volunteers; there were rooms to clean and extra meals to prepare. Signing on sponsors was perhaps the easiest task because they were delighted to be called and happy to participate. Strong shoulders and healthy backs, as well as those not so strong, were all clear-eyed, full-hearted and grateful to be so fortunate to be a part of Radha Madhav Dham's Mela.
One devotee observed, "Everything was a hit! Every aspect of the Mela went smoothly, and it was because of the volunteers and their devoted enthusiasm. That's what made the difference. That's what made everyone so happy." And that's what thousands of Mela visitors felt that day - happy.
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