Spiritual strength and advancement were the themes during the Balarama Appearance Day celebrations at the Regter van Zyl hall in the Neelsie Student Centre on 30 August. In Hinduism, Balarama is regarded as the spiritual giver of strength.
The mini festival was hosted by the Spiritual, Philosophical, and Yoga Society (SPYS). Performers included SPYS band members, Tasmin Le Roux, Gopi Jivana Dasa and Jade Green who led the meditation mantra at the beginning of the event.
A SPYS sign sits outside the concert venue lit with candles to welcome guests. “I really love organising events like these. I feel like I am changing the world although it is at a small scale. It makes me happy to bring peace into people’s lives,” said SPYS administrator and student in Public Development Management, Tara-Leigh Sassin (21). PHOTO: Teboho Mokonyana
Jade Green (27), a member of the Down to Earth catering company owned by Axl Maas (28), plays the harmonium while leading the meditation mantra during the mini festival. PHOTO: Teboho Mokonyana
Festival goers concentrate on Green as he leads the meditation mantra. PHOTO: Teboho Mokonyana
A harmonium is used to decorate the concert venue. The instrument produces sound as air passes through a vibrating piece of metal. PHOTO: Teboho Mokonyana
Festival goers meditate during the meditation mantra led by Green. PHOTO: Teboho Mokonyana.
Green plays his harmonium while Gopi Jivana Dasa (27), a masters student in Education, plays the drums as the mantra’s tempo begins to escalate. PHOTO: Teboho Mokonyana
The meditation mantra is displayed through a projector for festival goers to sing along. PHOTO: Teboho Mokonyana
Tasmin Le Roux (22), a BA Psychology student, singer, and poet performs the poem, “Sunrise”, during the mini festival. According to Le Roux, “that was our poem, it is very beautiful and one of the favourites every time we perform. Axl [Maas] wrote it.” PHOTO: Teboho Mokonyana
Dasa performs his song during the mini festival. “It’s a song I wrote when a friend of mine was really struggling and I wanted to write a song in her honour. It is all about staying strong and the idea of spiritual strength.” PHOTO: Teboho Mokonyana
Harivilasa Dasa (27), a graduate in BA Language and Culture, gives a talk on spiritual strength, self-control and being of service in other people’s lives. Dasa said, “it is so interesting how it is so natural in us to serve others. It is a very natural thing. We all do it so many times and we have all been on the receiving end of it many times too. And that is the secret of spiritual advancement.” PHOTO: Teboho Mokonyana
SPYS advertised its latest album, the Gaurafest Collections after the concert ended. The album is a collection of the SPYS bands’ live performances. PHOTO: Teboho Mokonyana