PRESIDENTS' DAY CAMP AT COLUMBUS...

Chinmaya Mission Columbus 1 February 2016

CMC Newsletter February 2016

For additional details and registration information, Visit our website:

www.chinmayamissioncolumbus.org.

Our address: Chinmaya Mission Columbus, 5302 Liberty Rd N, Powell, OH 43065

Contact Phone Information: Phone: # 614 -917-0160, Email: [email protected]

PRESIDENTS' DAY CAMP AT COLUMBUS CENTER

Rama is omnipotent. Rama is omnipresent. Rama is 'sarvam jagath'.

Anyone who happened to visit Columbus Chinmaya Mission on the Presi-

dents' Day Weekend would have smelt Rama; felt Rama; and rubbed

shoulders with Rama. On that weekend, around fifty Ramas were roam-

ing scot-free in the Chinmaya Mission. Most of them were tiny tots.

The occasion was 'Presidents' Day Weekend Camp' ( February 14-15)

with the blessings and presence of Swami Sharananandaji from the Chi-

cago Chinmaya Mission. The focus and theme of the camp was to cele-

brate Rama. Around fifty children in the age group of 5-14 participated in

the two-day camp enthusiastically.

'Grow to be great' was the motto and the kids literally grew with the stories

from the Ramayana. They identified themselves with Rama. They literally

lived in Ayodhya. It was a visual treat to look at the children who enjoyed

every second at the camp.

Chanting, bajans and devotional songs reverberated through out the mis-

sion. Apart from these, there were story-telling sessions, 'arts and crafts'

sessions and 'song and music' sessions. A film on Ramayana was also

screened.

Swamiji took class for older kids ( middle school and high schoolers). Ardent Chinmaya devotees John and Abba came from Ann Arbor, Mich-igan to aid and assist the camp. John conducted the class for pre-schoolers, kindergarten and first grader kids. Abba handled the class for 2nd to 5th graders. Kids enjoyed Rama stories. They watched the movie and did arts and crafts during the camp. The children very quickly mastered the Rama bhajans and to the delight of their parents sang the bhajans solemnly and beautifully. The crowning event of the camp was Sita Rama Kalyanam. Local priest Sri Satishgaru from the Columbus Hindu Temple was specially invited for the event. He conducted the Pooja in a serene manner. Shri Ganesh Pooja was held first and then Sita Rama Kalyanam was celebrated in a solemn and ritualistic manner.


SATSANG WITH SWAMI SHARANANANDAJI: JNANA SARA - THE ESSENCE

OF KNOWLEDGE

'I' am the basis of 'my' life. Without knowing 'I' the knower, the very basis of all, how can I be

truly knowledgeable ? "JNANA SARA" unfolds the path of Knowledge to the knower, the es-

sence of all knowledge.

"JNANA SARA" is a book written by Pujya Guruji Swami Tejomayanandaji, the head of Chin-

maya Mission. This short treatise of 18 verses has brought out the nectar of 'Upanishad Man-

tras' in a very lucid style, easily comprehensible even to the casual reader.Chinmaya devotees

of Columbus had the privilege of understanding this wonderful work due to the noble efforts of

Swami Sharananandaji, a direct disciple of Swami Tejomayanandaji. Swami Sharananandaji,

the acharya of Chicago Chinmaya Mission, gave wonderful discourses on this seminal work at

the Chinmaya Archana Ashram, Columbus for three consecutive days from February 11 to 13.

He explained the cause of multiplicity in the world, our identification with the body, our attach-

ments to the objects of the world in pursuit of pleasures, our feeling of doership and enjoy-

ership , what binds us and how to attain liberation. Swami Tejomayanandaji's lovely composi-

tion and commentary JNANA SARA opens up subtle vistas of thinking, which dawns into an

exhilarating Self-realization. His disciple Swami Sharananandaji deftly explained the nuances

of this important work from his direct shiksha from the guru. It was a scintillating experience to

listen to his discourse which was full of wisdom, Vedic explanations and Upanishadsaram.

A blessed weekend indeed.

Swami Sharananandaji hails from Puri in Orissa. Being inspired by Pujya

Gurudev H.H. Swami Chinmayanandji, he joined the two year brahmachari

training course in Sandeepany Sadhanalaya, Mumbai, in the year 1986. He

was trained by H.H. Swami Tejomayanandaji. He was given Brahmachari

Diksha in 1988 and became Br. Sharana Chaitanya. He has served Chin-

maya Mission centers in Anugul, Rourkela and Calcutta. He has been the

resident Acharya at Chinmaya Mission Chicago since March 1993.

On July 9, 1995 he was initiated into Sanyasa Diksha by H.H. Swami

Tejomayanandaji and became Swami Sharanananda. He conducts yo-

gasana and other scriptural classes during Chinmaya Mission family camps

in America and Canada. Swamiji likes to be with children. He places great

importance on value based living.

Because of Swamiji's dedication to Pujya Gurudev and his selfless service

to Chinmaya Mission Chicago, the center has not only thrived, but has ex-

panded to serve the spiritual needs of many neighboring communities. Ya-

munotri in Graylake, IL and NW Indiana center in Munster, IN are prime

examples of the growth that CMC has experienced within the past several

years.

Swamiji periodically travels to the neighboring states of Iowa, Ohio, Minne-

sota, Wisconsin and Michigan to conduct camps for children and discours-

es for adults. Swamiji's loving and humble personality is a great source of

inspiration to all that come in contact with him. His joyful exuberance and

enthusiasm is contagious and uplifting to all that come in contact with him.

SWAMI SHARANANANDAJI


Presidents' Day Kids' Art Work


The rhythm of the ocean’s waves blends with the serene setting at Chinmaya Tarangini off ECR at Uthandi. But this

‘temple’ to Matsya Narayana is not really a temple — the idols are not within four walls; there is a pebbled path that

provides accupressure when you walk on it barefeet; and there is enough greenery and space for one to sit peacefully

and meditate.

The main idol is a 12-ft granite rendition of Lord Vishnu in Matsya (fish) avatar surrounded by 108 granite pillars. Each

nine-foot pillar has inscriptions from Vishnu Sahasranamam and Ashtothra Shatha Namavali of Swami Chinmayanan-

da, with the inscriptions in Tamil and Sanskrit, and also translations in English. There are also Ganesha, Shiva and

Hanuman idols in the meditation park.

“All the statues are open to the sky. It’s a place where people can relax and meditate,” says Geeta Menon, trustee,

Madras Chinmaya Seva Trust. And this is exactly what people like Seshan PV, a college student from Pallavaram, do.

“I come here every weekend with family. It’s adjacent to the beach, so we can combine a spiritual outing with a casual

one,” he says. “The best part about the temple are the pillars — I have read almost every inscription,” he says, adding

that he likes Lord Shiva and Vishnu, but it’s rare to find both deities in the same place.

“We get about 200 visitors every day,” says Vijay Singh, the temple priest. “On Saturdays, the number reaches 500.

Many people from the fishing community nearby visit here often.” “All the events here like the Gayatri Mantra chanting

are open to men and women, to all communities and all levels of society. That is the need of the hour,” adds Geeta.

For many events, people in the community bring along their own instruments like nadaswaram.”

During the floods, Chinmaya Mission helped the fishing community nearby with relief matrials. So far, 18 fishing boats

have been donated, while 41 more will be given. It’s a Sunday and you can hear the sound of bhajans wafting through

the air. Close your eyes and hear the instruments merging with the waves — “devocean”, they call it. To get there,

take a left on Rajaji Salai, about 4 km after VGP Golden Beach Resort .

Chinmaya Tarangini Off ECR in Chennai


Felicitation of Swami Tejomayananda on 14th Feb 2016 at Delhi Centre

” An Interfaith Dialogue with the theme “Unity in Diversity” was held at Chinmaya Mission Chicago-Yamunotri center in

Grayslake on Sunday, November 15th. This event was conducted to highlight the common values present amongst

the various apparently different religions and practices.

Representatives from the Christian, Hindu, Islamic, Baha’i and Sikh faiths discussed the topic of Unity in Diversity in

great detail. Each representative described the importance of the sacred life and to experience oneness in all in spite

of the seeming outward physical differences. Everyone in attendance enjoyed the common message of the oneness

prescribed in the holy books of all different faiths.

First Interfaith meeting held at Chinmaya Mission Chicago-Yamunotri

CHYK Ann Harbor Retreat

Chinmaya Yuvakendra (CHYK) Ann Arbor, under the guidance of Chinmaya Mission Ann Arbor, hosted a CHYK re-

treat entitled Can You Hear Me Now? from October 30 – November 1, 2015. Discourses and discussions for the 40

participants were uniquely led by three Acharyas: Acharya Sharada Kumar, Acharya Vivek Gupta, and Acharya Gina

Singh. This retreat focused on approaching communication and dialogue from an Advaita Vedantic perspective. Addi-

tionally, the topics of gender and identity were broached in the discussions and activities to allow the participants to

think about these interactive topics in a Vedantic setting.

This retreat was the second in a series of CHYK retreats about gender; the first being the Developing Our Inner Devi-

ka retreat held in Washington D.C. in the summer of 2014. The first retreat was developed to allow women in CHYK to

discuss gender and identity in a Vedantic setting. This year’s retreat was created to bridge the gap between the gen-

ders and hold discussions about ‘becoming better allies’ to develop support within the Indian American/ Hindu commu-

nity.

This CHYK retreat offered some split-gender activities in the beginning of the retreat to allow for free discussion of

gender issues among seekers with similar experiences. There were also discourses from all three Acharyas, multiple

discussion and Q&A sessions, and a few recreational activities. Specifically, the participants engaged in an art activity

to explore their own identity using their own facial profile and a writing activity that encouraged reflection on the topics

covered during the retreat. At the end of the writing activity, each participant shared a short piece they had written with

the entire group. Since that weekend was also the holiday Halloween, there was an activity that allowed the partici-

pants to dress-up and celebrate Halloween.

Overall, the retreat was very successful. CHYK Ann Arbor is very grateful to the Acharyas and to Chinmaya Mission for providing this opportunity to grow and serve.

Pujya Guruji being honoured with the Padma Bhushan award by the Government of India is a matter of great pride and joy for the entire Chinmaya Mission family. An acknowledgement of his undiluted love and leadership qualities, it is a tribute to the vision of Pujya Gurudev and the work of the Chinmaya Mission worldwide. The Delhi Center was extremely fortunate to have Guruji in Delhi on the Feb 14 and like a kind and loving parent kindly agreed to celebrate this great milestone with Chinmaya members in Delhi NCR.

Swami Nikhilananda compared the life and qualities of Pujya Guruji with the confluence of the three sacred rivers – Ganga the symbol of devotion, Yamuna of action and Saraswati of knowledge. Speaking on the occasion Guruji said the sanyasi on embracing the order of sanyas relinquishes all titles but he has received such awards and titles. The Padma Bhushan is one more in the series. On another note he opined that the giver must be humble and the receiver grateful. When the sanyasi has identified with the whole then the award is an acknowledgement of the work of Pujya Gurudev and Chinmaya Mission.

The evening began with a Paduka Puja and ended with Gurudev’s arati. All in all the evening left the hall full of Chin-maya followers with indelible memories to mull over and carry home.

News from other Chinmaya Mission Centers


Guru Dev's Quotes

On Being Alone, versus Loneliness

Aloneness is different from loneliness. By remaining lonely, at a place where there is nobody else, realization is not guaranteed. Even in the midst of a crowd you can be alone – all alone is Brahman, the one with-out a second. Aloneness is not in the surroundings, but it is in one's atti-tude within the bosom – to remain with one end or goal – to remain with all attention fixed upon that one goal. The habit of constantly remaining alone, even in a busy market-place, is to be cultivated.

Therefore, in order to reach samadhi, learn to sit down at least ten minutes every day without any activity, physical and mental. Let us sit down, without any expectation of possible enjoyments, with the firm un-derstanding that the objects around us can never give us the happi-ness. Constantly, keep up the habit of remaining alone, remembering him. With nothing else in the mind, the mind is alone. The alone-mind alone can move to the truth which is always alone.

Chinmaya Archana—Temple Timings:

Chinmaya Mission Camps

CORD - Chinmaya Organisation for Rural Development Chinmaya Vibhooti

Chinmaya Naada Bindu

Activites of chyk in USA - FOR YOUTH

Chinmaya Kids - FOR KIDS

SCHOOL AND COLLEGES

Website of Global Chinmaya Mission Chinmaya Mission - West

Chinmaya Mission Worldwide News

Chinmaya Mission Worldwide Events

http://www.chinmayamission.com/category/news

http://www.newindianexpress.com

http://www.chinmayadc.org/Smrithi/ChinmayaSmrithi

http://www.mychinmaya.org/index.php

Chinmaya Mission Key Websites

Temple Timings: All days - 7.00 PM - 8.00 PM. Special

abhisheka will be performed on the third Saturday (10.00

AM - 12.00 noon) of every month. If interested in spon-

soring the abhisheka , please contact Dilip Rajan at

[email protected]

Upcoming Abhishekam date: March 19th 2016

Resources /References

http://chinmayamission.org/camps.php

http://www.chinmayamission.com/cord.php

http://www.chinmayamission.com/chinmaya-vibhoooti.php

http://www.chinmayamission.com/naad-bindu.php

http://www.chykwest.com/

http://www.chinmayakids.org/

http://www.chinmayamission.com/schools-and-colleges.php

http://www.chinmayamission.com/

http://www.chinmayamission.org/

http://chinmayamission.org/news.php

http://chinmayamission.org/events.php

PRESIDENTS' DAY CAMP AT COLUMBUS...

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