At 10.30 pm on July 2, 2005, boy racers, during a typical Saturday night’s escapade, smashed into the rear of a car carrying three devotees returning from a preaching programme.

Nanda Vraj and his wife Citralekha were lucky to escape serious injury, but their rear seat passenger, Hiranya Garbha das recently arrived from Fiji, had to remain in hospital for surgery to a fractured wrist. The accident occurred on Irirangi Drive in East Auckland, and at the time of the accident, Citralekha was chanting and had their deities in a bag, on her lap. After the impact, the car rolled several times, and she described it as a miracle that they were not killed. The deities were also not harmed.

The police will be laying charges against the driver of the other vehicle and the car was considered a write off.

The Couch: Edition 10, June 2005