{"id":1611,"date":"2024-08-10T14:45:40","date_gmt":"2024-08-10T14:45:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.yoganandafortheworld.com\/story\/?p=1611"},"modified":"2024-08-10T14:45:40","modified_gmt":"2024-08-10T14:45:40","slug":"swami-kriyananda-stories-ch-3-a-visit-to-the-vatican","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.yoganandafortheworld.com\/story\/swami-kriyananda-stories-ch-3-a-visit-to-the-vatican\/","title":{"rendered":"Swami Kriyananda Stories — Ch. 3: A Visit to the Vatican"},"content":{"rendered":"

When I moved to Ananda Village in 1976,<\/strong> I was offered a job at \u201cPubble,\u201d the department where Swami Kriyananda\u2019s books were published.<\/p>\n

Shortly after I joined the staff, Swamiji invited us to his home to discuss some projects.<\/p>\n

He lived on the other side of the ridge from the main \u201cdowntown\u201d part of the Village. I walked with Asha and Seva. They were nuns, and they walked a little ahead.<\/p>\n

I was deeply nervous about meeting the great man for the first time. I thought, \u201cGosh, it\u2019s like going to meet the Pope or something!\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

When we arrived, we heard music issuing from Swamiji\u2019s living room \u2013 it was a raucous, jazzy tune, accompanied on piano by a man whose voice was energetic, intelligent, and sardonic. I recognized \u201cThe Vatican Rag,\u201d a comic song by Tom Lehrer, a former professor of mathematics at MIT. It was playing very loudly, and Swami was laughing heartily:<\/p>\n

First you get down on your knees,<\/em>
\nFiddle with your rosaries,<\/em>
\nBow your head with great respect, and<\/em>
\nGenuflect, genuflect genuflect!
\n<\/em>
\nYou can do what steps you want if<\/em>
\nYou have cleared them with the pontiff.<\/em>
\nEverybody say his own kyrie eleison,<\/em>
\nDoin\u2019 the Vatican Rag!….<\/em><\/p>\n

He sang the refrain: \u201cGenuflect, genuflect!\u201d between bursts of laughter.<\/p>\n

My mouth was so far agape, you could have parked a battleship in it.<\/p>\n

Get in line in that processional,<\/em>
\nStep into that small confessional,<\/em>
\nThere the guy who\u2019s got religion\u2019ll<\/em>
\nTell you if your sin\u2019s original.
\nIf it is, try playin\u2019 it safer,<\/em>
\nDrink the wine and chew the wafer.
\nTwo, four, six, eight \u2013 time to transubstantiate!<\/em><\/p>\n

So get down upon your knees,
\nFiddle with your rosaries,<\/em>
\nBow your head with great respect, and<\/em>
\nGenuflect, genuflect genuflect!<\/em><\/p>\n

When in Rome, be like a Roman.
\nDraw a cross on your abdomen.
\nAve Maria, gee it\u2019s good to see ya\u2019!
\nGettin\u2019 ecstatic and sorta dramatic and<\/em>
\nDoin\u2019 the Vatican Rag!
\n<\/em>
\nSwamiji had known my thoughts, and it was typical of him to want to dispel any notion that we were expected to hold him in special awe. His spiritual stature evoked our love and respect, but he never paraded it or demanded our obeisance.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When I moved to Ananda Village in 1976, I was offered a job at \u201cPubble,\u201d the department where Swami Kriyananda\u2019s books were published. Shortly after I joined the staff, Swamiji invited us to his home to discuss some projects. He lived on the other side of the ridge from the main \u201cdowntown\u201d part of the … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1611","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nSwami Kriyananda Stories — Ch. 3: A Visit to the Vatican - Swami Kriyananda: Lightbearer<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"A 58-year disciple of Paramhansa Yogananda recalls his hilarious first meeting with Swami Kriyananda.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.yoganandafortheworld.com\/story\/swami-kriyananda-stories-ch-3-a-visit-to-the-vatican\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Swami Kriyananda Stories — Ch. 3: A Visit to the Vatican - 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