The word is Yiddish but it seems to apply well to this assortment of sort-of religious knickknacks for sale at the Krishna chariot parade. The feeling is quite similar to what I remember from my Catholic upbringing and still see throughout Europe and the Americas. People need just the right souvenir.
So here's what was going on in Monday's post. The International Society for Krishna Consciousness, popularly known as the Hare Krishnas, have an annual devotional parade alongside a lake in a suburban park. There is a big turnout from the South Asian community. A large, wildly colorful shrine on wheels, referred to as a chariot, is pulled along the path, accompanied by singing, chanting and dancing. Might be wrong, but I think this man was a priest of the sect, full of equanimity on a blazing, cloudless day.
