Colors, smiles, joy, beauty, peace, contentment, interaction, discovery, education, new friendships, chanting, singing, meditation - these are some of the words that can be used to describe the event that was held during the Indian Holi festival day at the Bang Na campus of ABAC University in Bangkok, Thailand. The morning involved a story on the origins of Holi and how it is basically the triumph of good over evil; the conquest of sensual values by spiritual values. The morning then continued with some discussions about Krishna, meditation, and goodness among people. In the latter part of the morning, which was inside a large conference room, we had kirtana, and devotees had gathered on a small stage and chanted the Hare Krishna mantra using mrdanga drums, bells, and other instruments that create the light and happy sounds of music. The audience was made up of a gathering of different nationalities - Thailand, India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Russia, American, China, Nigeria, Indonesia and a few others. Everyone was a part of the event; asking and answering questions, giving comments, singing, etc. And everyone was so happy; all you could see were so many teeth of so many smiles. But I think the pinnacle of the day was when everyone went outside to discover the fun in throwing the myriad colors of powder that are associated with Holi. The event marks the end of winter and the beginning of spring, and the colors represent some of the beautiful parts that come with spring, like the colors of the leaves on trees, the bright and beautiful birds that sing in the new birth of spring, and the waters that replenish the new births that come with spring. We all went out onto the football field and our day exploded with greens, yellows, blues, reds, and more, as we immersed ourselves in all the colors of a new spring. It was the first time this event was held at Bang Na. Many people that had been invited that did not attend, after seeing pictures of the day, made assurances that they will not miss the event next year. It was the ultimate of positivity and happiness, fun and friendships. I can’t wait for the event to come again.

-By David Steele
Student at Faculty of Science and Technology 
Assumption University of Thailand

Disclaimer: Randomly picked from devotees post from Facebook, mostly from Nila Lim Prabhu's post.