Encintas' First Annual Kirtan Festiva
Encintas’ First Annual Kirtan Festival
It was only because of a new job in the San Diego area that my husband and I left Santa Barbara, the city where I discovered yoga and my spiritual practice. As we scouted this vast new region for a place to call home – with its countless yoga studios, practitioners and the Self-Realization Fellowship – I knew Encinitas was our community. And I was excited to learn that a group of devotees of kirtan (sacred song) and Hindu devotional mysticism called Jyoti Mandir were launching the First Annual Encinitas Kirtan Festival. Jyoti Mandir is lead by Bhakta Sundaram, who organizes weekly kirtan circles in Encinitas plus up to 30 kirtan concerts a year. And with so many rock, blues and folk festivals in the region, Sundaram felt it was time to initiate a kirtan festival.
My husband and I arrived for the puja (worship) that opened 12 hours of sacred music and community. Sequoia Neptune set the day’s devotional tone with the Hanuman Chalisa, before Shantala took the stage. Shantala is comprised of a devoted couple, Benjy and Heather Wertheimer, who have performed and recorded internationally with other well-known kirtan artists such as Krishna Das, Deva Premal and Miten and Jai Uttal. The love and devotion in the center was palpable and to witness their amazing
talent was a blessing to all. I welled up with tears.
Others joined the festival atmosphere, including: Bolo! (pictured), devotees born from a drum circle turned kirtan jam band (bolochant.com); Reverend Tom Kelly, founder of Soul of Yoga (soulofyoga.com) who delivered an inspirational keynote speech on the power of devotional chanting; Vaiyasaki dasa adhikari, known as the premier Western exponent of traditional Bengali-style raga kirtan (kirtan.org); and Durga Das (David Newman) and Mira who concluded their set with a meditation for world peace (davidnewmanmusic.com).
Rina Vray Murray and her husband practice at Tim Miller’s Ashtanga Yoga Center in Encinitas (ashtangayogacenter.com).
By Rina Vray Murray
