The children are taken downstairs where treasured coloring books and crayons await their masterful artistry. The adults gather in the family room above as the man in the saffron robes begins to slowly raise the tempo of his kartals and rhythmic chanting. It reaches a crescendo that leaves the guests crying for more and the hosts intermittently glancing around the windows to check if the neighbors are not being disturbed.

The class begins. Verse after verse from the ancient and timeless text of the Bhagavad-gita are recited, notated, discussed, and internalized. Everyone feels charged with a new perspective to life. There is a greater appreciation for everything one has received with a firmer understanding of the Source and His infinite opulences. The little ones appear almost magically with glee and a feeling of accomplishment as they run toward their parents with brightly colored pictures of the Lord in His pastimes. That’s also the signal for a sumptuous prasadam that is beckoning. This was more than twenty years ago.