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elements that test all one's patience. This convention, I mentioned to a friend, was not meant for the weak-hearted.
Paramahamsa Niranjanananda's talks and satsangs for various groups prior to the commencement of the convention were of great help in setting the tone and helping the travel-troubled souls to get into the right frame of mind. What was amazing, though, was how calmly he would sit in the midst of a situation that was filled with hectic activity and demanded great coordination and phenomenal managerial and leadership skills, answering letters and at the same time responding to a question about a certain aspect of yoga. Paramahamsa Niranjanananda later revealed to us that mental and muscular tension is natural in organizing so big a function, but one should keep that inside and not allow it to show on the outside.
November 1. The convention begins with chanting and the inaugural address. The weather is pleasant and sunny, we go for lunch and come back to resume the programme, which is held at the polo grounds under a massive shamiana of bamboo poles covered with thick canvas.
Half way through the programme, as if a zip is opened through the sky and you are placed under a waterfall, it begins to pour and the wind blows from all sides. Water soon collects on the cloth ceiling of our temporary structure. We, more than 4000 people, are caught and my fear that the structure could collapse grows by the minute. Another possibility, probably worse than the first, is that a rush to get out may lead to a stampede. The speaker, oblivious to the environment, continues, as people rush this way or that to avoid the water coming down. Soon it is clear that the proceedings cannot go on. Paramahamsa Niranjanananda and other swamis leap to the front of the dais and with a stroke of genius turn to singing. Some devotees begin to dance, and soon disaster turns to a euphoria of joyousness and togetherness. The convention takes a new turn.
Paramahamsa Niranjanananda's words on the second day were, "We were so preoccupied with making the arrangements, looking after each and every detail, that we almost forget that without God's blessing and grace nothing can go on. So we were reminded."
Giving the whole event a cosmo-spritual twist, Paramahamsa Niranjanananda went on to talk of imposing one's will
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