Delhi, India. 19 September 2013. Full Moon.
Today was my first full day in Delhi. My plan was to visit a Nadi leaf reader at the suggestion of a friend back in New York City. I managed to find the locatin after taking the metro at RK Ashram Marg near where I am staying in Pahar Ganj. The same friend suggested I stay here as well. I guess I follow suggestions well! Two transfers later I get off at the Lajpat Nagar stop, walk down the stairs to get into a bicycle rickshaw. There is a certain amount of trust and faith that is necessary to move around India and an enormous amount of patience. It didn't take very long until he found the address and I proceeded up the stairs to where I met a gentleman at a desk. He asked if it was my first time and I answered yes. He then instructed me to place my right thumb in a blue ink pad and stamp the book with three impressions of my thumb. I wrote down my name and he handed me a card with the date and time that I placed the impressions in the book. He went into another room and I sat down to wait. A short while later another gentleman came out and asked me to come in and sit down at a desk across from him. He had sheath of palm leaves between two pieces of wood measuring approximately a foot long and two inches wide. He unwrapped the string holding the two pieces of wood together. The string was attached through a hole in the leaves and he started flipping through the leaves asking me questions. The questions ranged from work, brothers, sisters, marriage, father's name, mother's name, date of birth and day of the week of my birthday. I was to answer yes or no to the questions he asked as he read from the palm leaves. He went through the first bundle and there were no matches. He asked me to go and sit down in the reception room once again. This happend two more times and when I went in the last time he started flipping through another sheath. Just before the second time a gentleman came out with a lamp and performed puja befoer all the deities in the room. He came over to me and I washed the sacred flame over my eyes (third eye included!) and head. Sitting at the desk he began to read and he asked me questions that matched exactly my parents names, that I have three sisters and a brother, whether they are married or not, date of my birthday and even the day of the week - he said Friday - well I just looked it up and he was correct. Now this was the deciding factor for me that this was not just a coincidence. Since it was a Thursday the interpreter was not there and he asked me to come back tomorrow (Friday) at 4 pm. I'm gong to record the conversation if I can and will post an update none the less...
