Paying Respects to Upasni Maharaj


Day Trip to Sakori

our van, garlanded for our trip to Sakori on the anniversary of Upasni's dropping his body.
       Our little caravan of half a dozen vans and a car pulled up a
couple of miles before the destination in order to garland our vehicles.

Sakori: Garlands of Memory

...Upasni's Sakori, a self-contained little campus of pastel temples, each unique and imaginatively sculpted by a Divine pastry chef working exclusively in Love!

...The excitement of the auspicious day
of our visit, December 24, anniversary of both the dropping of Upasni Maharaj's body, and the birth of Godavri Mai.

...The musicians and dancers
who began performing in the foyer of the main Temple, just after we went inside. The drums and those "bagpipey" Indian horns that alone seem to be able to convey a mood of spiritual ecstasy!

...In the main building, feeling the deep
sense of something Cosmic still going on there, as we were instructed where to bow down before Upasni's crypt, and then again near the shrine to Godavti Mai, where several aged kanyas sat chanting Vedic texts as they have every day for years. Everything in the Temple so colorful and soothing to the eyes and ears: pages from Divine Imagination.

...Once inside the Temple, the decision whether to take photos of this beautiful and holy site. I chose not to, as it seemed important to be fully present, rather than trying to compose or imagine the next shot.

...As we walked along the sidewalks to and from the brick building we passed, but did not stop at, a large glass showcase, in which was a life-sized or bigger model of a dog that looked like a daschund. (It may actually have been a stuffed dog.) It seemed a bit comical among all the temples, but also very sweet. I wondered whether it had been Upasni's pet. The word "Teja", I believe, was printed in large letters below the case. There was no time to stop and read the whole sign.

...from the main hall, we walked
to the small brick building where Upasni Maharaj sat with Merwan intermittently for 7 years, mostly at night, and finally folded hands to him, saying, "Merwan, you are the Avatar and I salute you." Sakori has an atmosphere of peace and joy throughout. I could only keep thinking "this is Real." It was incredibly momentous to visit several of our world's "Places of places," of which I had read and heard for so many years.

...On our way out, we received
little round (delicious) coconut cakes as prasad, and a red bindi mark was placed upon each of our foreheads. We sat under a large tree in the foyer outside the main Temple for this, and Murshida Conner spoke to us, as well. Now and then, one of the kanyas would come over and pay respects to Murshida.     


my van mates: Annie, Andrea, Samantha
Van mates for the day: Annie, Samantha, and Andrea.
picture of Upasni Maharaj on our inside windshield
Upasni Maharaj's photo on the inside of our windshield.
view of Sakori Temple complex entrance
The entrance to the Sakori Temple complex.
the rest house in Sakori where we had lunch.
A rest house, down the street from the Temple, where we ate lunch.
Rangoli (chalk mandala drawn on the ground)
Nice example of Rangoli, the chalk mandala designs you see in India.
white buildings across from our rest house. clean, interesting angles.
Buildings across from the rest house. Nice angles.
Parade in Sakori 1
As we were eating lunch and using a 2nd floor rest room, a parade commemorating the special day came marching down the dirt lane.

Sakori parade 2 women in bright saris
Women in brilliant saris
came after the flag and musicians that led.
Sakori parade 3, the float (sacred image or statue) cart
A float. Could not see the image inside, unfortunately.
end of Sakori parade
The parade approaches the Temple complex.

Sakori, Page 2
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