With our daily power cuts happening, I thought that I head towards the city and look for the railway station. I drove around a few different entrances and finally found a very helpful lady who told me that she would message me when the trains are back on line (literally). I was looking at the option of my return trip to Johannesburg early December via train but I wasn't aware that the passenger train service had stopped. I'm guessing that it's a side effect of lockdown but it's a sad one nonetheless.
The surprise was seeing a Hindu temple around the corner from the station so I stopped in to see if it is open to the public. I was then guided through the prayer process of the different deities by the resident priest or Purjari who shouted them out, then beckoned to me to kneel. His English was limited as much as my Hindi so it was gestures and mumbles behind the masks. I was smiling very broadly behind my mask when asked to kneel to the ground for a third time and I wondered how was I supposed to get up.
He showed me the room where there is 8 days of prayers currently happening and invited me to join in the evenings. I was also annointed on my third eye and I shouted out a prayer to the mother of finances ( I think) Lakshmi so I'm sorted from here on.
I'm loving all the different architecture and buildings of the city and the friendliness and willingness to share their sacred spaces with the world.
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